Please
by DontCallMeCoward
Summary: Phil, a Hufflepuff with a pension for potions meets Dan, a Slytherin Quidditch star, while working together on a special potion project. 100% PHAN *RATED M FOR SMUT* AmazingPhil/ Danisnotonfire, AU (Harry Potter). Includes other Youtubers. Looking for FLUFF? Read Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 6. Looking for SMUT? Read Chapters: 3, 4, 5. Looking for a GOOD STORY? Read: the whole thing.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This idea has been stuck in my head for a while and I finally decided to write it. This chapter gets fluffy at the end but it will get very smutty by chapter 3. Please let me know what you think!**

"Phil?"

"What? Sorry," I said.

"I said, can you pass the butter, please?" Carrie asked.

"Oh, yeah. Sure."

I had been grumpily staring off into space nibbling my piece of toast. It was our first day back from holiday and it just had to start off with double Potions with the Slytherins. I was admittedly pretty good at Potions, but a few of the Slytherins did not appreciate the fact that I outshined them in class. They had done countless things to sabotage my work, the latest of which resulted in my ending up in the hospital wing with boils all over my face and a week of relentless teasing from everyone in their house. Thankfully, Slughorn saw through their pranks and realized that when something went wrong, it usually was not my fault.

Suddenly a loud roar of laughter came from the Slytherin table. _If they are telling that story about me again_… I thought. But when I looked, I realized they were glancing over at the Gryffindor table, probably having just caused some poor first year's pumpkin juice to explode all over them or something. I saw Charlie, the Head Boy, get up from his seat at the Gryffindor table and walk over to comfort a small girl who looked like she had indeed received a face-full of her drink.

"They are so annoying," Carrie said, rolling her eyes.

"Who's that, love," Alex asked, who had just appeared and took a seat at the breakfast table beside his girlfriend.

"The stupid Slytherins," she responded.

As they started talking, I began daydreaming again. But this time, I was watching the group of Slytherins who had been laughing. I recognized the tall one with the dark hair as Dan. He was one of the few from his house that I did not detest. It was not because he was nicer or that he had ever given me a reason to like him. I was ashamed to admit it, even to myself, but it was because he was so hot. The way he strutted confidently around the castle was just plain sexy. He had good cause for that confidence as well. Not only was he physically attractive, but he was also the seeker of the Slytherin Quiddich team. He was brilliant; they had not lost a single game yet this year. And it was clear that the other Slytherins looked up to him, even ones that were in years ahead of him. He was a year ahead of me so I had never had any classes with him, but I had heard teachers go on and on about how skilled he was with magic. Slughorn would always talk about him during potions, often comparing my work to Dan's. Even McGonagall remarked about him occasionally, and she was not a teacher to praise other students, especially those from Slytherin. In short, he was tall and dark and a powerful wizard. He was one of those people who could get away with anything, short of killing someone, because of his sexiness and natural charm.

As Dan rose from his table, a number of others followed. They clearly wanted everyone to know that they were friends with him. As he walked out of the Great Hall, books in hand, and cloak flowing behind him, I wondered idly if he even knew who I was. I was the keeper on the Hufflepuff Quiddich team so we had played a few games against each other. Well, he played; I mostly watched him play. Whenever we played against Slytherin, my team knew that we stood no chance of winning. They thought it was because they had really good chasers. I knew it was because I spent more time watching Dan fly than I did watching the Quaffle. But despite the time we had spent on the field together, I never got the impression that he had any clue who I was.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo 

"Well done, Lester. Well done."

"Thank you, Professor." I cleared my cauldron with a wave of my wand and packed up my things, thankful to have survived the Potions lesson without too much trouble from the Slytherins. Just as I turned to walk out the door with everyone else, I heard Slughorn say my name.

"One moment please?"

I approached his desk. "Yes, Professor?"

"That was quite some potion you brewed today, Mr. Lester. You have come a long way."

I vaguely wondered if he was referring to my Muggle-born status instead of my skill in potions, but I just nodded and said, "Well, I have had a good Potions Professor, Sir."

"Oh, my boy. Always so polite. Now, I don't normally do this, but would you want to do a little project? There's a potion I need to have brewed and I thought it would be a good opportunity to get some of the best and brightest minds together. That would be if you are willing to put in the extra time after class, of course."

"I would love to, Professor," I responded. "What exactly are we brewing, may I ask?"

"All in good time, Mr. Lester. If you would come back here at 6:00 that would be splendid."

"Okay. I will see you later then, Professor."

"There's a good boy."

I left his office excited. I knew I was good at Potions but I had not thought I would ever be asked to help Slughorn with a potion. The rest of the day went by quickly. I spent the time thinking about my appointment with Slughorn and what it could possibly entail. _I wonder whom else he meant by 'some of the best and brightest,'_ I mused. I had considered the fact that Dan might be among those asked by Slughorn to participate, but I quickly pushed the thought out of my head. I did not want to get my hopes up. And I knew that if he were there I might be a little too distracted and lose my reputation with Slughorn.

When I entered the dungeon at 6:00, there was already a girl there chatting with Slughorn. She had flaming red hair and I recognized her as Lily Evans from Gryffindor; I was pretty sure she was a 7th year. Not far behind me came Severus Snape. I shrunk back when I saw him; I detested him for all the cruel things he had done to other students. I saw a look flash across Lily's face that made me think she felt the same way about him that I did.

"Hello Lester, Snape," Slughorn greeted us. "We're just waiting on one more, but perhaps I could begin to tell you why you are here while we wait. Please gather around." He indicated a single cauldron sitting on a desk that had an open potions book next to it. We went stood around it somewhat awkwardly. "Shall we begin with brief introductions for the benefit of Mr. Lester? I know that you two already know each other," he said, indicating Snape and Evans.

Slughorn turned expectantly to Snape who kept his eyes on the cauldron and said, "I'm Severus Snape. Seventh year. Slytherin."

"You're also one of the best students in Potions I have ever had the pleasure to teach," added Slughron. "But of course, you are all here because you are brilliant in this wondrous subject."

"Mr. Lester?"

"I'm Phil," I began. "I'm a fifth year. I'm in Hufflepuff and I play keeper."

"That's right!" said Lily. "I've seen you play; you're very good. I'm Lily by the way. I'm also a seventh year, but I'm in Griffindor.

"Fantastic!" exclaimed Slughorn, clapping his hands together excitedly. "Now that we all know each other, lets begin, shall we? I have been asked to create a Wiggenweld Potion. Do any of you know its uses?"

"It's a healing potion," muttered Snape, sounding bored. "It has the power to awaken a person from a magically induced sleep."

"Very good. And I'm assuming none of you have brewed it before?" He looked around, and seeing that no one had attempted it said, "Well then, this should make for a good learning experience. I have for you the instructions in this book and I have gathered the ingredients in my store cupboard. You will have to be very careful as many of them are rare and were very tricky to obtain. Now—"

The door to the dungeon banged open. "Sorry I'm late, Professor." I turned around to see Dan hurriedly striding over to the table. I was momentarily frozen in place. I felt heat rise to my cheeks and I hoped no one noticed. He quickly weaved his way through the dungeon and came to stand between Snape and me, for which I was grateful. They nodded at each other in recognition and Dan began to explain himself. "As I was leaving my dormitory, my bag— "

He was cut off by a scream. Four heads whipped around to see Lily who had collapsed on the floor and was obviously in pain. Slughorn rushed over to her side and knelt down as best he could given his girth. "Oh dear, it seems as though she touched the leaves of the Wolfsbane. It poisonous and can cause you to feel as though you are in great pain, though I'm sure Lily is in no immediate danger. Snape, could you please escort Ms. Evans to the hospital wing immediately. Madam Pomfrey will be able to sort her out if you go straight away."

"It's fine, Professor. I can go by myself," Lily managed to say.

"No, I insist. Snape, go help Evans."

Snape walked over to her. I saw her glair at him as he picked her up and carried her out of the room.

Now it was just Dan and I.

"Well now, that's a little inconvenient," said Slughorn nonchalantly.

Dan and I glanced at each other. I could tell he was as shocked as I was that Slughorn was taking that incident as lightly as he was. But I trusted that he knew what he was talking about.

"Phil, right?" asked Dan. "You're the Hufflepuff keeper."

"Yeah," was all I managed to respond, shocked that he knew my name, let alone recognized me.

"I'm Dan," he said, extending his hand. "I don't think we have ever properly met."

I took his outstretched hand and shook it. "It's nice to meet you." When he retracted he hand, he ran it through his immaculately straight hair, fluffing it up a bit. I wondered if he used a potion to keep his hair straight. With all the fumes in the dungeon it was impossible to keep your hair straight without magical help. Mine often got a little frizzy after an hour in the classroom, even with the help of my hair-straightening potion. His on the other hand was always perfect; I would have to ask him how he made his potion.

"Now as I was saying before we were interrupted," Slughorn continued, winking at Dan, "we will be brewing the Wiggenweld Potion. There are instructions in this book here, but this potion allows for a lot more flexibility in ingredients and timing than most. So it is your job to experiment and brew the most potent potion possible. I'm going to let you two work on it alone so I can't interrupt your brilliant creativity in any way. Any questions?"

_Yeah, how am I supposed to work with this heartstoppingly hot guy next to me_, I thought to myself.

"Can we use anything we like from your supplies, Sir?" Dan asked.

"You are welcome to use anything you can find," he responded. "I'll be in my office if you have any further questions or if something explodes." Slughorn sauntered off into his office and closed the door behind him, leaving Dan and I alone together.

"Shall we start?" I asked, not looking at Dan, but pulling the book over between us so we could read through the instructions. We both leaned in over the table and began to read. His arm was no more than two inches from mine—I mentally slapped myself. _Focus, Phil_. Potions was my thing and if there was any way I was going to impress Dan it was through my ability to understand potion making.

As I looked over the page I realized that the potion was quite complex as it was. It was far more advanced than anything we had done in class and I struggled over how it could possibly be changed to make it better. Maybe replacing the Horklump juice with Bulbadox juice; I knew they had similar properties and Bulbadox tended to be more potent. As I reached up to flip the page, Dan was doing the same and our hands met before either of us could stop our reach.

"Sorry," I said quickly, glancing up at him and retracting my hand.

"Its okay," he said, meeting my gaze.

I blushed and quickly looked back down at the book and continued reading.

"So what do you think we should do," Dan asked after we finished reading. "I was thinking that fairy wings might work better than the Chizpurfle fangs. But we would have to use a lot and they tend to shrink the potion."

"Yeah, I think that could work. Or maybe a Graphorn horn? I don't know if Slughorn will have any but I think it might be worth a try. And I was thinking that Bulbadox juice could replace the Horklump juice."

"Oh, yeah. I hadn't thought of that. That's a really good idea." We continued on like this for a while, making notes in the margins of the book about ideas for what we could replace or tweak to make it different. When we had finished brainstorming, I went to go get the first ingredients from the store cupboard. When I returned, Dan had lit the fire under the cauldron and was waiting patiently.

"Its salamander blood first, right?" I asked, putting the ingredients down on the table.

"Yeah."

I began to add it to the cauldron, waiting for it to take on the distinct red color described by the book. Once it looked right, Dan immediately started stirring slowly counterclockwise. He had some stirring technique where he added an extra little twist and flick in his wrist that seemed to be working more efficiently than normal stirring. I got myself to stop staring at him and began to prepare the other ingredients.

As we continued to work, I couldn't help but notice how perfect Dan really was. I had really only seen him before at a distance, but now, working side by side on this potion, I was beginning to notice more little things. His face was perfectly proportioned. His heavy eyelids covered perfect, deep brown eyes and his full lips looked like they would have the texture of rose petals. His tan skin seemed to glow in the light of the fire under the cauldron. It turned out that he was actually a very nice person as well. Unlike the other Slytherin's, he never made fun of me or spoke condescendingly. He valued my opinion and treated me as an equal. And he was just as brilliant as all of the professors made him out to be. I could see his mind whirling as he reread parts of the instructions, looking for other options with ingredients and timing for the potion.

Because the table was small, we naturally bumped into each other a few times. Dan seemed unfazed by it, but each time, I felt an electric shock pulse through my body. Not much time had passed but I felt as though I had already fallen under his spell. I tried hard to push away what I was feeling, however. I knew I had no chance, not only because I was a Hufflepuff and he was a Slytherin, but also because I highly doubted that he was gay as well.

"Good call with the Bulbadox juice," Dan said half an hour later when the potion almost immediately turned the desired color after adding the ingredient. "You're pretty good at this."

"Thanks. So are you. Adding an extra Moondew drop was brilliant," I said as I stirred the potion. I stiffened as Dan reached around behind me to grab an ingredient that was sitting on my other side. His proximity made a chill run down my spine. "How were you doing that stirring thing earlier? It looked more effective."

"What?"

"Like this." I attempted to do the twist-flick thing that he had been doing. It resembled it somewhat but was nowhere near as graceful.

"Oh, yeah. That's something my dad taught me. Here, let me show you."

I went to hand him the spoon but to my surprise, he grabbed my hand in one of his and put his other hand on my wrist. He slowly guided me through the motion, putting pressure on various parts of my hand to push it in the right pattern. His hands were soft but his grip was firm; the way they moved over my hand was almost sensual to say the least.

"You try by yourself," he said, taking his hands away.

"Like this?" I looked up at him, unleashing the full power of my bright blue eyes. If I had the slightest chance of being with Dan, I knew I had to take advantage of the time I had with him here.

"Perfect," he said, looking directly back at me. I don't know whether it was just a second or an hour that we stood there staring into each other's eyes, but Dan eventually looked away and gave his head a quick shake. "Um, I guess we should, um, add more salamander blood now."

"Right," I said. I continued to stir while Dan added the blood. I thought it could have been my imagination, but I could have sworn that I saw Dan's hand shaking as he poured it in. Disbelievingly, I wondered if we had really just had a connection. Did I really have the same effect on him that he had on me? I gained confidence at the thought.

We continued to work but the atmosphere had tangibly changed. I could tell that Dan was taking extreme care not to touch me again, but he stayed close leaving no more than a few inches between us. There were a few times when we made eye contact that I thought I noticed him blush.

"Do you think Snape is going to come back?" I asked as we waited for the potion to change color.

"Doubt it. No offence, but I doubt he would want to work on a potion with a fifth year. He thinks he's so much better than everyone else. I have to give him credit though. He really is outstanding at potions."

"Why aren't you like the other Slytherins?" The question had tumbled out of my mouth before I had a chance to think about it.

"What do you mean?"

"Well," I said, regretting asking, "you're nice, for one thing."

Dan laughed. "We aren't all terrible people like everyone thinks we are. I mean, sure there are some of us who don't play well with others and make everyone else look bad, but the majority of us are just in the house because we aren't afraid to go after what we want."

"What about whoever made that poor Griffindor girl's drink end up all over her face this morning? That might have seemed like harmless fun, but she's probably scarred for life."

"Yeah, well, the twins, Jack and Finn, aren't exactly some of the nicer Slytherins. I'm only friends with most of them because I know that if I weren't, I would be obliterated by the few who actually care about things like blood and power. And no one in any other house wants to talk to me because they are either afraid of everyone in my house or automatically think I'm a jerk because I am a Slytherin"

"That's unfortunate. Most people don't want to talk to me just because I am a Hufflepuff. You would be surprised how many people actually believe that everyone in my house is good for nothing."

"Well that's obviously not true. Look at the potion we've made together. It's at least fifty percent your work and I would say its turning out perfectly at the moment." He smiled at me.

"Thanks," I said, returning his smile.

"Do you mind?" Dan asked, indicating the spoon I was holding. I handed it to him, but this time instead of avoiding contact at all costs, he let his fingertips brush over my hand. He came and stood next to me at the table. As he stirred, he slowly moved closer and closer to me, his arm eventually making contact with mine. I held my ground to see if he would recoil; when he didn't, I smiled to myself. We stayed there, arms gently touching, as Dan made the required 30 stirs clockwise. The consistency of the potion was such that I could clearly see his reflection in the surface. After staring at it for the first ten stirs, I realized that it was staring back at me. I did not break eye contact but adjusted my body so that we were generally closer, but not touching any more than we were before. It was though there was an electric charge running between the small gap of space between us and I could see in his eyes that he felt it too.

He reached the 30th stir and I pulled away, breaking the spell. "Now should we try the fairy wings?" I asked, taking a pinch from the jar and reaching up to add them into the cauldron.

"Wait just a second," said Dan reaching up and grabbing my hand before I could add them. He hadn't moved, but had remained staring into the cauldron. Now he looked directly at me; I could see his expression change from one of contemplation to one of uncertainty. "Let's let it boil a little longer. Besides, there's something _I _wanted to try." He did not release my hand, but instead used it to pull me around so my back was against the table and I was facing him. I stood there looking up at Dan who was mere inches away from me, wondering what he could possibly be thinking. He leaned in and gently placed his hands on either side of me on the table. I was trapped; I couldn't have moved even if I wanted to. But at this point, I had to admit to myself that I had absolutely no desire to move.

He leaned in even closer and my blue eyes were locked with his brown ones. Stopping three inches from my face, he whispered, "You really are brilliant at potions. And your eyes. They are so stunning." He reached up and delicately brushed my hair out of my face.

I could sense his hesitation. He was barely breathing and his hands were definitely shaking this time. Seeing the effect I had on him gave me courage. I leaned in slightly, gauging his reaction. Seeing that he did not pull back, I closed the rest of the distance and kissed him.

I felt his shock at what I had done and this time he almost pulled away. But as I reached up and tangled my hands in his hair, pulling his face closer to mine, I felt his hesitation slip away and his kiss become more passionate. He brought his arms slowly up my body and wrapped them gingerly around me. The thought occurred to me that he had probably never kissed another boy before, and that this might possibly have been the first time he had even considered it.

The image of the dungeon and the sound of the potion brewing behind me melted from my awareness. All I could think about was the feel of his mouth on mine. His full lips were soft and he moved them delicately but skillfully. His tongue gently asked for entry into my mouth and I granted it, marveling at how sweet he tasted. As he gained confidence, his tongue became more eager and I fervently matched his enthusiasm with my own. His mouth consumed mine and I felt as though I was enveloped in heat. It could have been from the proximity of the fire under the cauldron behind me or from the fact that there was now no space between Dan's and my bodies. Our hearts were pounding in rapid synchrony, beating out a rhythm that our tongues danced to.

Eventually we broke apart, gasping for air.

"Wow. That was…. Wow," said Dan once he had regained his breath. His eyes were wide with what looked like a combination of shock and exhilaration.

I grinned and looked up at him, placing one more delicate kiss on his perfect lips.

Suddenly there was a loud sizzling and popping noise that came from behind me. I spun around to see our potion bubbling over. It was beginning to become clumpy and looked like it was about to explode.

"Oh, shit," said Dan.

I quickly pulled out my want and made the potion vanish before it could inflict any damage. "That would have been awkward to explain to Slughorn," I said, still grinning.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews on the first chapter! They made me smile :) I know this chapter was kind of long, but I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! The M rating for this fic will be justified in Chapter 3… so consider this your WARNING for PHANSEXUAL SMUT coming up soon ;) **

We walked out of the classroom together after explaining the progress we had made to Slughorn, and successfully making him believe that we had been forced to evaporate the potion because we had added too many fairy wings which caused it to start coughing out blue dust.

"Hey Phil," Dan said to me when the dungeon door swung shut behind us.

"Yeah?"

"Could you, like, not tell anyone about what happened? I would probably have to sleep with one eye open if my friends found out. If you were a Slytherin girl, they would be all for it, but given the circumstances…"

"Listen, I know. I won't say anything, okay? No one knows I'm gay either." Dan flinched. "Look, I just hope you aren't… ashamed of what happened."

"Um, not at all," Dan said, not looking me in the eyes.

"Okay," I said, seeing his discomfort. "I'll see you around then." We had reached the end of the corridor and my dormitory was in the opposite direction as his, so I turned to go.

"Bye, Phil," he said quietly.

As I walked back to my dormitory, I could not believe what had just happened. I had just kissed Dan Howell. The sexy, brilliant, powerful, Slytherin sixth year whom I had been crushing on since we played our first Quiddich match against each other last year. And even though Dan had been hesitant, it felt right. Perfect. Like it was meant to be. I had been in a few relationships before over a few summers and I had of course kissed my boyfriends, and even gone further with a few, but none of them compared to kissing Dan. Perhaps it was because our kiss had been so spontaneous, because it had been so unexpected, or because Dan had seemed particularly vulnerable. Whatever the reason, I knew that I wanted to kiss him again. It took everything I had to not turn around and run after him. Instead, I forced myself to get into bed and go to sleep.

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I awoke the next morning with a nervous excitement, anticipating seeing Dan at breakfast. Of course, I would not say anything to him, or even probably make eye contact with him, but the thought of being back in the same room with him gave me butterflies. I dressed quickly, but carefully, making sure my cloak fell just right and my tie was in properly straight.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry," Alex asked me sleepily from his bed.

"I'm really hungry," I replied before grabbing the books I needed for my first classes and dashing out of the dormitory.

When I made it to the Great Hall there was barely anyone there. _Good. I need time to calm down._ I sat down and began nibbling on a piece of toast while frantically trying to flatten my hair.

Alex and Carrie came down while I was waiting and joined me for breakfast. By the time we finished, the Great Hall had already filled up and was starting to empty as people began to leave for their classes. I still had not seen Dan. I tried not to think about it too much. Perhaps he just was not hungry that morning. Or maybe he had eaten super early.

I left with Alex and Carrie for Transfiguration, pushing all thoughts of Dan to the back of my mind. But even with my new commitment to not thinking about the previous night, I was still easily distracted.

"Just what do you think you are supposed to be doing?" Professor McGonagall asked me during our lesson.

"I'm trying to make my mouse vanish, Professor," I responded innocently.

"Then what is a mouse tail doing dancing around the classroom?" she asked, exasperated.

"Sorry, Professor," I said quickly, summoning the tail in question which had indeed been hopping around the classroom and doing a little dance, causing the rest of the class to get distracted and watch its progress.

"That was brilliant," Alex muttered to me when McGonagall had walked out of ear-shot.

I just laughed and made the rest of the mouse vanish, not caring to admit that the dance that the tail had been doing mirrored the one I was doing in my head as I could not help but recall the events of the previous night.

I did not see Dan for the rest of the day or even the next day despite my efforts to get to the Great Hall early and leave later.

Thankfully, on Thursday, there was a Slytherin v. Ravenclaw Quidditch match. Dan, as seeker, would have to be there. Alex and I met up with Charlie before the match and we squished into the stadium with the Griffindors. Our side of the stadium erupted with cheers and applause as the Ravenclaw team soared out onto the field. The deafening cries drowned out the announcement of the names, but I knew most of the team anyway. I recognized my friend PJ Liguori as he zoomed by as a streak of blue, making his pre-game lap around the pitch. The Slytherins took the field shortly after. Dan was last to take to the air. I watched as he rocketed into the sky with grace.

The game began and the players took off, cheers and insults from the crowd following them. I cheered loudly with the rest of the Ravenclaws, but I was secretly hoping Dan would catch the snitch. As I watched him play, it looked as though he was distracted. There were a few times that I saw the snitch fly within feet of his head and he did not even notice.

The Slytherins had made some excellent goals at the beginning but the Ravenclaw chasers had worked hard to close the gap and they were quickly pulling ahead.

"170-60 to Ravenclaw!" I heard the announcer shout after PJ made a particularly spectacular goal. If Dan did not catch the snitch soon, there was a good chance they would lose the game.

Dan made a sudden dive and the Ravenclaw seeker, Bryarly, who had been tailing him followed closely behind. There was a collective gasp from the crowd as everyone looked for the snitch. Abruptly, Dan shot back up into the air and the other seeker shot past him, almost taking out one of the Ravenclaw chasers. He had been trying to fake her out. The crowd exhaled.

Before Bryarly could recover however, Dan began to zoom off in the opposite direction.

"Do you reckon he sees it this time?" Alex asked.

"Its right there!" shouted Charlie, looking through his binoculars and pointing to the bottom of the farthest goal post.

Dan shot down through the middle of the field, causing several of his own teammates to swerve out of his way. He was a blur of green and silver as he raced toward the snitch, Bryarly gaining on him.

"Come on Bry!" Charlie cheered for his girlfriend as she fought to win the snitch.

As Dan began to extend his hand, Bryarly slammed into him from the side, knocking him from his course and gaining the advantage. I covered my eyes, unable to watch but quickly spread my fingers so I could peek through them.

Just as Bryarly lunged for the snitch, it rocketed upward. Dan pulled up sharply, changing direction before anyone else knew what happened. It took Bryarly too long to pull out of her lunge and by the time she and recovered, Dan had caught the snitch.

The green and silver mass on the opposite side of the stadium erupted with cheers. I made my best effort to look sad, but inside my head, I was dancing.

There were a few hostile shouts from our side, but the crowd surrounding me was mostly reduced to angrily muttering. "I can't believe it! She was so close!" Charlie said in disbelief. "I'll catch up with you guys later." Charlie began to push his way through the crowd exiting the stadium in an attempt to get down to his girlfriend, who was now sitting, disappointed, on the field, while Dan took a victory lap around the pitch hundreds of feet above her.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooo

I looked up to see the owls swooping into the Great Hall the next morning at breakfast. No matter how many times I had seen this phenomenon, I could never get used to it. I usually did not receive any mail; my parents, being muggles, did not understand how to send owl post and all of the magical friends I had were already at school with me. This morning however, a large gray owl landed in front of me and promptly stuck out his leg. I quickly untied it and immediately recognized the seal as Slughorn's. He never failed to be extravagant when he had the chance.

I unfurled the scroll and it read:

_Dear Mr. Lester,_

_I would be delighted if we could have another little potions gathering tonight in my classroom at 6:00. _

_Professor H. E. F. Slughorn_

I looked around to see if any of the other three had received a letter. Dan and Snape were nowhere to be seen, but I quickly spotted Lily's flaming hair at the Griffindor table and it looked as though she had indeed received a letter as well. She looked up and saw me, throwing a smile in my direction and holding up her letter. I waved politely back.

My heart began to beat double time. Dan would surely be there. I would finally get to see him again. I wondered briefly how he would act after what happened last time and I could not suppress the thought that I was part of the reason he had not been eating in the Great Hall. I decided to confront him about that tonight if I go the opportunity.

More good news came when I was told that all of my classes had been canceled for the day. Professor Kettleburn was in the hospital wing recovering from some injuries he had incurred from some illegal creature he had been keeping hidden in the Forbidden Forest. And double Herbology was canceled because Professor Sprout had to harvest some emergency plants for a remedy for him. That left me with nothing to do until 6:00.

I decided to spend that time in the library and get some work done. Everyone had really begun to pile on the work because it was our OWL year so I figured I should use my spare time productively. I went to my dormitory to gather my books then settled down in the library to begin my two-foot long essay on giant wars in the early 1300s.

At 5:30 I decided to stop working and go get ready for Slughorn's. I ran to my dormitory to drop off my things and spent some time in front of the mirror, checking my hair and clothes. With plenty of time, I left and walked down to the dungeons, hoping Dan would be there early so we could talk. Our departure last time had been somewhat awkward and I had gotten the feeling that he had regretted kissing me, but I still clung to the hope that being in back in the same room together would rekindle whatever had been between us.

When I pushed the door open to Slughorn's classroom, I was half expecting to see Dan there waiting for me. Instead, I was greeted the sight of Lily talking with Slughorn again.

"Hello Phil," Lily said brightly as I walked over to them.

"Hi," I said, trying to mask my disappointment. "Are you feeling better?"

"Much, thank you. Madam Pomfrey got me sorted out almost immediately."

"Glad to hear it."

Just then, Dan and Snape strode in, apparently deep in conversation.

"You just have to make sure you are one hundred perfect focused when you cast the spell," Snape was saying.

Dan looked up when they entered the room and his eyes met mine. It was difficult to see through the dim haze of the potions room, but it looked for a second as though his face paled and all emotion drained from it. But as I held his gaze, I thought I saw his expression soften and corners of his lips twitch up in a smile before he glanced away.

"Well now, we're all here! Lets get started, shall we?" Slughorn said brightly as Dan and Snape took their places around the table. "I believe Dan and Phil made some good progress last time, so Lily, Severus, if you look over their work and make some notes of your own, that might give you a good place to start."

"Okay, Professor," said Lily.

"Splendid. Off you go." And with that, Slughorn retreated to his office, leaving the four of us with a cauldron, a book, and some ingredients.

We gathered around the textbook and Snape and Lily quickly looked over what we had already written, then we got to work. With four hands we were able to work much more efficiently but this left a lot of spare time waiting for the potion to brew, which we filled with slightly awkward conversation. I noticed that whenever Dan talked, he avoided making eye contact with me, but when I spoke, I was all he looked at.

As we were preparing the lionfish spines, I glanced up to see Dan's eyes focused on mine. Instead of blinking and looking away quickly like I expected him to however, he held my gaze. I felt a small smile begin to form on my lips as I looked into his deep brown eyes and I saw his lips mirror mine. Just like that, the energy that had been between us before was back. Our eye contact was only broken by Lily asking for our lionfish spines to add to the potion.

"We need more salamander blood," said Snape.

"I'll get some," I offered. I walked around the table to go to the store cupboard and discreetly squeezed Dan's elbow as I passed him, partly to see what his reaction would be and partly because I could not keep my hands off him. When he glanced back at me, I saw a small smile on his face.

I returned from the store cupboard, placed the salamander blood in Snape's outstretched hand, and began to prepare the sprig of mint. I was carefully making slices down the stems when I felt a hand briefly touch the small of my back.

"Need any help?" Dan asked, leaning on the table next to where I was working.

"That would be great," I said, glancing up at him, my eyes locking with his yet again. "Would you mind holding the stems flat and straight while I cut them?"

"No problem," he said, breaking off the first stem and promptly holding it down on the cutting board.

The energy between us was palpable and I could feel myself heat up as I leaned in close to Dan to cut the plant. It was physically impossible not to touch each other in the process of preparing the ingredient. For him to be able to hold the stem straight and for me to be able to cut a precise line down the middle required that our arms be practically entwined and our bodies be almost pressed up against each other's. I could feel his light breath on my ear as I cut through the stems, my hand brushing up against his at the end of every cut. Even with a lack of complete physical contact, it felt intensely intimate working in such proximity. The fact that we were so completely in each other's personal spaces but not quite touching created a tension—a good tension—between us. And I knew Dan could feel it too. I felt like I needed to close that small gap of space keeping our bodies apart, but my common sense and desire to not reveal ourselves to the other two in the room made me refrain from throwing my arms around him and kissing him until I could not breathe. I suddenly could not wait until we were done with the potion for the day. I did not know how he would feel about me bringing up our kiss again, but I fully intended to talk to him after we were done.

I worked as hard as I could to make sure the rest of the potion was made quickly. There were a few more times when I caught Dan staring at me as I worked. He only blushed slightly, but otherwise held my gaze.

When we had finished the potion, we were all satisfied with our work; it appeared as the book described.

"Marvelous, marvelous!" Slughorn declared when we told him we had finished. "Very good for a second try! I'm sure it would work if we had to use it, but it could use a few adjustments to make it more potent. You did very well today." With that we were dismissed.

I quickly packed my things with the others and was about to walk out the door with them when I heard Slughorn say my name. A crushing wave of disappointment rolled through me as I turned around to Slughorn, letting Dan walk out the door without me.

"I just wanted to tell you that I am very impressed with your work. You are only a fifth year, yet you are managing to keep up with even the brightest seventh years. I hope you realize how talented you really are."

"Yes, Professor," I said, anxious to leave in the hope that Dan had not gone very far.

"Don't let it get to your head though. You could really learn a lot from the other three. They are quite excellent themselves and with their guidance, you could gain a whole new understanding of the subject."

"Yes, Professor," I said again.

"I would like it if in a few years you could be mentoring other students. I could see you becoming a brilliant Potions master one day, Mr. Lester. But for now, go. Get some rest. You all worked very hard today. Thank you for agreeing to do this."

"Thank you, Professor," I said quickly and hurried out of the room, hoping to be able to catch up to Dan. I half jogged down the corridors to the Slytherin dormitory, thinking that was the most likely place he would have gone. The halls were practically deserted; anytime I saw someone my heart skipped a beat.

I stopped eventually, not knowing exactly where the dormitory was and wandered around for a while, clinging to the idea that he might still be there. I was not too sure what I would say when I saw him, but I knew that I needed to talk to him. There was no question in my mind as to whether he was interested in me now. His reserved flirtatiousness was enough to show me that. But I needed to know if there could be something more. I was not even positive that I wanted more, but I did know that Dan was really hot and a really good kisser.

After an hour of aimlessly wandering around the castle, I found myself on the seventh floor. The castle had become deserted and, glancing at my watch, I realized that it was past curfew. Just as I decided to give up my fruitless search, I heard someone address me.

"What are you doing out so late, my boy?" A portrait of a knight inquired of me.

"Lost track of time," I said, not wishing to have this conversation.

"You should be in bed, young man!" he called to me as he ran through another painting of what looked like trolls trying to do ballet. I ignored him and was about to round the corner when I ran straight into something.

I was prepared to run, thinking it was the caretaker, Pringle. When I looked up however, I saw an extremely flustered tall boy with perfectly straight hair and deep brown eyes.

"Oh my gosh, Dan. I'm so sorry!"  
"That's alright," he replied, looking slightly confused and uncomfortable.

"Why are you out so late?" I asked.

"Just going for a walk."

As I looked into his eyes, I began to see tears forming and I noticed that his eyes already looked slightly red as though he had already been crying.

"What's wrong?" I asked, concerned. He had seemed more than fine just over an hour ago. I placed my hand gently on his shoulder to comfort him.

"Phil, its just…. I…. You…. I'm so confused. Everything I thought about myself—"

He broke off suddenly and we both froze. The sound of footsteps was coming from not too far around the corner. Shrinking back against the wall, we stood perfectly still, barely daring to breathe.

"If you breathe a word of this to anyone…" a female voice whispered threateningly.

"I'm not going to tell anyone. You know I would probably be murdered in my sleep if they found out. But I just hope _you_ don't forget about this. And maybe you can realize that leaving your arrogant toe-rag of a boyfriend would be a good thing for you," a deep male voice responded pleadingly.

"Arrogant toe-rag or not, I _love him_."

"But you love me too. You can't deny that anymore after tonight."  
"It doesn't matter," the female voice said scathingly.

The heavier set of footsteps stopped and the lighter sped up. The echo of the pair that was moving was getting louder. Not wanting to get caught out of bed after hours, I grabbed Dan and pulled him through a doorway that I was pretty sure hand not been there moments ago.

I closed the door quickly behind us. "That was close," I said.

"Yeah," Dan responded quietly.

I looked around to see a cozy room about the size of Slughorn's classroom that was set up much like the Hufflepuff Common Room. Light from a fire in the corner danced around the room. It was sparsely furnished, but everything that was there looked like it was fit for a king. A thick carpet lined the floor and three rather large couches along with four armchairs of varying size and shape sat around the room. On the walls, there were shelves of books and cabinets that held who-knows-what and a large mahogany table that stood in the corner.

I looked over at Dan. He was quietly staring at the ground, looking a little bit like a lost puppy.

"Do you want to tell me what's up now? Now that we won't be interrupted again?"

He just looked at me with a lost expression.

"Come here," I said, pulling him by the hand over to the couch that faced the fire. Sitting him down, I turned so I was facing him. "Now tell me what's wrong."

He stared into the fire and I waited patiently. After a moment, he opened his mouth to speak but shut it quickly. He took a deep breath, opened it again and said, "I just… I don't know who I am anymore."

"What do you mean?" I asked, puzzled.

Tearing his eyes away from the fire, he looked directly at me and said, "I thought I was straight, Phil. But ever since our first day in Slughorn's, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. And I don't just mean thinking about you; I mean _thinking_ about you."

My heart rate had doubled. Dan had just admitted that he had feelings for me and this made me unbelievably happy. But my delight quickly became diluted with waves of guilt over how it was making him feel.

"There's nothing wrong with that Dan. I haven't stopped thinking about you either," I admitted

"I know, but…. When I was younger I used to think of myself as bi. I never had any feelings for any guys but I just kind of knew, you know? But my friends started teasing me… about how I acted and how I dressed. When I got a girlfriend when I was 11 all of those problems went away and I was happy. I decided sometime then that I was straight. And I haven't questioned that since." He paused and took a deep breath. "But then we were working on the potion and I noticed how smart you were and how beautiful your eyes were and how your smile is all crooked. And then you kissed me and, well, I liked it. And now I can't eat or sleep because I feel like I shouldn't feel that way."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so forward last time." All I wanted to do was wrap my arms around him and hold him and tell him everything would be okay, but I figured that doing so would not help his predicament.

"No, don't apologize. It wasn't your fault. I _wanted_ to kiss you. That's why I'm so confused. It's so strange to want to be with you. To have you touch me again." His voice was barely a whisper now. "In that last Quidditch match, I saw you in the stands and the entire time all I could think about was kissing you again…." He trailed off, his eyes drifting back to the fire again. "And now I'm just scared. I don't know what to do about what I feel. It's so different from everything I thought I was. But at the same time… I don't know if I want to go back."

"That's understandable. I always knew I was gay but when I found out that guys were 'supposed' to be with girls I felt like a freak. I felt like everything I felt was wrong, so I pretended to be straight. When my friends asked who I had a crush on I would make up a name of a girl who lived on my street or who I had met at camp. But then I began to meet people who were like me and I learned to embrace who I was. I'm not going to flaunt it here at school, but I'm not ashamed of it anymore." I put my hand on his knee to comfort him. He just continued to stare into the fire. "If you want, I can help you. I can show you how normal it is to be with another man. I don't want you to feel pressured into it, but I would really like to be with you if you give me the chance. We can take it really slow, okay? I promise not to do anything that will make you uncomfortable. If you say stop, I will stop."

I looked intently at his face, shadows dancing across his perfect skin. I saw his head nod almost imperceptibly.

"Phil?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you hold me?" He looked at me imploringly.

I moved closer and wrapped my arms around him, pulling his body into mine. Instead of stiffening like I thought he might, I felt his whole body relax and he nuzzled his head onto my shoulder. I sat there and reveled in the feeling of his warm body pressed against mine. We breathed in synchrony; I could feel his chest rise and fall against mine. Reaching up to stroke his silky hair, I felt something land on my hand. Noticing that it was a drop of water, I looked down at Dan and noticed that silent tears were rolling down his cheeks.

"It's okay, Dan," I said, gently wiping the tears from his face. He responded by pulling himself closer to me.

"Can I… try something?" I asked softly after a while. Dan lifted his head to look at me. I placed my fingers under his chin and looked into his eyes, making my intentions clear. "You can stop me if you want."

Behind his red-rimmed eyes I could see his hesitation but also a hint of eagerness. I moved my head fractionally closer to his, feeling hesitant myself. When I saw that he did not resist, I closed my eyes and slowly brought my lips to his.

He responded immediately, moving his mouth against mine. His lips were especially soft from the tears that had washed over them. I trailed my tongue over his bottom lip, licking up the salt that remained there from his tears. This action seemed to ignite a spark that brought back with a shock, the electric charge that had been between us earlier that day. The tender kiss that I had planned suddenly exploded into something much more passionate.

Without thinking, I tangled my hands through his hair. His lips parted to allow my tongue to enter his mouth. Our tongues danced together like the flames of the fire that were licking at the interior of the chimney. His breath mixing with mine in my lungs was intoxicating and made me feel lightheaded.

I leaned farther and farther into the kiss, bending him backwards until he was lying down on the couch and I was on top of him. Bringing one hand down from the back of his neck, I let it roam over his chest, exploring his perfect body. Only when he entwined his fingers with mine did I realize how far I had let this get.

Abruptly, I broke the kiss and said, "Dan, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean for this to get so—"

"Shhh," he said, pressing his finger to my lips. "You make me forget about everything else. You make me lose control and not care. I like it. Don't worry about me." And with that he brought my head back down to his and nibbled at my lower lip, causing a small moan to escape my lips before I devoured his mouth once again.

We became breathless and broke apart whereupon I began to trail kisses across his jaw line and down to his neck. He squirmed underneath me when I reached this area and again, I pulled away.

"No, don't stop. My neck is just really sensitive." I looked at him skeptically. "If you don't get your mouth back on me right now, I'm leaving," he threatened in mock-sternness.

Smiling, I returned my lips to his neck and began to nibble and suck at his sensitive skin. I felt him un-tuck my shirt from my pants and his hands slipped up inside. He ran his large hands over the skin on my back, massaging the skin slowly as I massaged his neck with my mouth. Pulling his collar down slightly, I dipped my tongue into the dip just above his collarbone, causing him to gasp. I trailed my flat tongue from this point slowly up his throat and over his Adam's apple.

I recaptured his mouth in mine, but he quickly tangled his hands through my hair and removed his lips from mine.

"Let me tell you a secret," he whispered. He pulled my ear down next to his lips, but instead of speaking, he lightly licked the ridge of my ear, causing me to shudder. I had not realized how sensitive that part of my body was before. "You taste so good," he murmured in my ear. He began to nibble my ear lobe and kiss the space between my ear and my jaw line. I captured one of his hands in mine and began to plant kisses on it. Then I slowly put one finger in my mouth and sucked hard. He gasped again, momentarily derailed from his work on my ear. I did the same to each of his fingers, swirling my tongue around and sucking hard.

He pulled my mouth back to his, capturing it in another impassioned kiss. When we broke apart, breathless, Dan said, "I can't believe I was avoiding you."

"What?"

"Well, you were the reason I was feeling so confused so I figured if I just stayed away, everything would get better. But being here with you now just feels so normal. You make everything feel right."

"It always feels right letting yourself be who you are," I smiled. "I'm glad I can help you see that." Giving him a peck on the lips, I sighed and said, "We should probably get going though. Its late."

I climbed off of him and stood up. Dan sat up and watched me as I gathered my things off the couch. "You should probably wait a few minutes after I leave so we aren't caught together out late," I said.

Dan was staring into the fire again but he looked up at me when I went and stood in front of him. "We should do this more often," I said, leaning down and giving him one last long kiss.

I walked across the room to the door, leaving Dan on the couch.

"Wait," Dan said quietly. I paused, my hand on the doorknob. "Stay with me." I turned around and Dan was still on the couch, but he was looking at me pleadingly. "I haven't slept well since I met you. If you leave now, I'm just going to start over thinking things again. I need you here."

I hesitated at the door. I was glad that Dan was feeling more comfortable with the idea of being with me, but I knew that he was still fragile. If anyone were to find out that we spent the night together, it could be bad not only for our relationship, but also for Dan himself. I also did not want to push things too far too fast, for fear that he would feel overwhelmed and run away.

"Please?" he begged.

I looked into his eyes and saw that he did indeed look sleep-deprived. His eyes searched mine and I could see that all they sought was comfort. Crossing the room in a few long strides, I sat back down and pulled Dan into a hug.

"I'll stay."

"Thank you."

I lay down and pulled Dan down next to me, wrapping my arms around him. "Sleep now," I whispered, running my hand through his hair and giving him one last kiss. He pulled himself closer to me and let his eyes close.

I watched him through my heavy lids as he drifted off into sleep. His face looked peaceful and almost childlike as he lay there. As I looked at his perfect features, I could not help but think of how lucky I had been. If I were not good at potions, if Slughorn had not needed to make that potion, if he had not asked Dan to work on it too, I would not have been lying there and falling asleep with the most gorgeous man I had ever met in my arms.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: As promised, this chapter contains high levels of phansexual smut. Please let me know what you think! I really appreciate every single review :) **

I woke up the next morning to an empty room, but on the pillow where Dan's head had been there was a piece of parchment with a note on it. It read:

_Same time, same place, tonight?_

I smiled and tucked it in my pocket.

Getting up from the couch and stretching, I realized with a start that I was supposed to be meeting PJ and our friend Chris for our trip to Hogsmead. Charlie and Alex usually came with us too, but they had decided to make the trip a double date on this particular weekend. I glanced at my watch and realized that I was supposed to have been in the Great Hall 15 minutes ago. Gathering my things as quickly as I could and double-checking to make sure Dan's note was still in my pocket, I sprinted to my dormitory to change clothes then to the Great Hall where PJ and Chris were waiting for me, looking slightly annoyed.

"What took you so long?" PJ asked.

"You're so late!" Chris complained.

"I'm so sorry guys, I overslept," I said, panting.

"Alex said you weren't in your bed when he got up."

"I, er, fell asleep in the library when I was studying." They looked skeptical, but seemed to accept my answer. "Lets go, then! No use standing around making us even later," I said, trying to change the subject.

Chris rolled his eyes dramatically, but they let it go and as we walked, we fell into conversation about the upcoming Hufflepuff v. Ravenclaw match. PJ was one of the best chasers Hogwarts had ever seen and he knew it. Though he was humble about it, you could still see the pride in his eyes when he talked about Quidditch. I did my best to convince him that Hufflepuff would win, but he was having none of it. He knew that one of our beaters had been injured during the last match and he was still recovering. We had been forced to conduct emergency tryouts to fill the position and ended up with some third year who was rather large and could swing the bat hard, but had trouble aiming. When he reminded me of this, I countered with the fact that we at least had decent beaters. The current Ravenclaw beaters were tiny and rather ineffective in the game. Our debate over who would win carried us all the way to the Three Broomsticks, where we finally called on Chris to settle the dispute. He was in Gryffindor so he was the most impartial judge we had. Chris put on an exaggeratedly thoughtful face and finally said, "Ravenclaw will catch the snitch, but Hufflepuff will win."

PJ and I both looked at him, shocked at his unexpected prediction. It rarely ever happened that the team that caught the snitch was not the one that won.

"What?" Chris asked seriously. "Bryarly is a really good seeker, but Alfie has been getting a lot better lately and I think he's going to do really well next time."

Chris's wild prediction and the arrival of our drinks effectively ended our argument. I drank greedily from my butterbeer. It worked wonderfully to counteract the cold January weather. I felt its warmth spread through my body as I looked around at the other students who had all taken shelter in the restaurant.

"Peej, Zoe Ella is staring at you," Chris whispered.

PJ's eyes widened and he choked on his butterbeer. Chris and I doubled over in laughter at his reaction. Glancing over at the table Chris had indicated, I saw that Zoe was indeed giggling to her friends and repeatedly glancing over at our table. She was now blushing having realized that we had noticed her. Chris slapped PJ on the back as he came up from his butterbeer, spluttering.

"What's she doing looking at me for?"

"Well, I would say she likes you," I said, as though I were explaining addition to a third grader.

"Oh, shut up. She's a seventh year. There's no way she would be into me."

"Well, you do have beautiful eyes," said Chris in a mock-flirtatious voice.

"And you are a hot Quiddich player," I joined in, winking at him.

"Oh, stop. You're making me blush," said PJ, pretending to be abashed.

"You should go for that," said Chris.

"You mean like ask her out?" asked PJ. "No way. And wasn't she the one who was hanging all over James Potter last year?"

"Yeah, but now he's with Lily so it doesn't matter. And she's so hot, isn't she, Phil?"

"Oh, uh, yeah," I said. "You should do it Peej. No harm in trying." I had definitely learned that lesson the other night.

"_Maybe_," PJ said reluctantly. "You guys are ridiculous."

"No, Peej. We just want you to be happy," said Chris, taking PJ's hand and batting his eyelashes.

"Shut it," said PJ, pulling his hand our of Chris's grasp and hitting him on the shoulder with it. "And if you don't stop that, Zoe's going to think I'm gay anyway. Then I'll have no chance."

"Maybe you should ask her friend out, Chris," I suggested, indicating the girl sitting to Zoe's right.

"She's alright," he responded. "What about you then?" He glanced around the room then said, "How about that girl in the corner?"

"I'm happily single thank you very much."

"Unless of course you would rather ask out a guy. I'm always here for you, darling," Chris winked at me.

"Thanks, Chris. That means so much," I said sarcastically, throwing my napkin at his face, and trying to act nonchalant.

He made a big show, acting as though I had offended him in the most egregious manner.

Despite the close call with an awkward conversation, it was nice to be with Chris and PJ. In the last few months we had all been so busy with school that we barely had any time to hang out with each other. We passed the time drinking our butterbeers, joking with each other, and complaining about teachers. I told them briefly about the potion project I was doing with Slughorn, though I neglected to tell them that I was less excited about the potion and more about whom I got to work with. As it turned out, PJ was having extra lessons with McGonagall because he was so good at Transfiguration. And Chris was working part time at the Wizarding Wireless Network Headquarters.

Our conversation came to a halt when we heard high-pitched giggling approaching our table. "Hey PJ," Zoe said, flashing him a bright smile.

"Hey Zoe." PJ returned the smile and looked up at her with his green eyes.

"Good job in the match the other day. You're a really fantastic chaser."

"I do my best," he said, leaning back nonchalantly in his chair and running his hand casually through his hair.

"That last goal you scored was so amazing!" Zoe said in awe.

"Thank you," he responded, looking up at her through his long eyelashes. "It's nice to know I'm appreciated."

"Yeah, well, I'll see you around." She smiled at him again and, blushing slightly, walked out the door with her friends following closely behind her and giggling like mad.

"His eyes are so gorgeous!" we heard one of her friends whisper.

"Told you so," said Chris.

PJ just rolled his eyes. "Do you guys mind if we stop by Spintwitches? I need to pick up some stuff for my broom."

We stood up and as I reached into my pocket to take out money to pay, my hand curled around a piece of paper. Dan's note. I had transferred it into my pocket that morning when I had changed so I could keep it with me. I suddenly got very excited and did not mind the fact that we were about to walk outside into freezing weather.

Shoving the note deeper into my pocket, I paid and followed the other two out the door.

When we got to Spintwitches, PJ went to go look at the twig-tail clippers and asked Chris to help him pick the best ones. Chris did not play Quidditch himself, but both of his parents had played professionally so he knew more about the sport than just about anyone at Hogwarts.

Not needing anything for myself, I contented myself with looking at the brooms in the window. There was a new Comet 260 sitting on the right, but my attention was grabbed by the Nimbus 1001 on the left. It was beautiful and glossy and looked like the fastest broom ever made. I went about inspecting every inch of it. Every twig of the tail was perfectly in line and the handle had just the right curve. Running my fingers along it, I could almost feel the power that it had. I knew that I would never be able to afford it, at least while I was still a student, but I could not help from imagining myself taking it out for a ride. Maybe Chris's parents owned one. I would have to ask him if I could borrow it over summer.

Suddenly, a familiar voice interrupted my thoughts. "I have to do something, I'll catch up with you guys in a minute."

Looking up, I saw Dan standing outside of the window. He winked at me, jerked his head indicating that I should follow him, and began to walk away. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that PJ and Chris were in a deep discussion about the twig-tail clippers. Not bothering to tell them I was leaving, I slipped out the door and followed Dan. I stayed a good distance behind him, not wanting anyone to know that I was following him—though in the cold January weather, there were not many people on the streets. I watched his graceful, tall, slender figure walk in front of me until he suddenly disappeared around the corner into a small alleyway. When I reached it, I saw him waiting for me in the shadows.

"I got your note," I said as I approached him.

"Did you have any other plans tonight?" He looked slightly nervous.

"Nothing more important than you," I said, winking.

"Good," he said, visibly relaxing. He looked at the ground. "Listen, I just wanted to say thanks for talking to me last night. I don't know what I would have done…."

"Are you feeling better about everything?"

"It's still… weird. Its going to take some getting used to, but I'll learn."

"I can teach you," I said, taking his head in my hands and looking him in the eyes. "Want to learn something right now?"

I saw a small smile play across his lips and he gave a small, eager nod.

I took a step forward, pushing him up against the wall. Slowly, I brought his head down to mine and my lips to his. He responded immediately, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling my body close to his. I tangled my hands through his snowflake-dusted hair and I felt his large hands squeeze my waist. For a moment, I was lost in everything that was Dan. The taste of his mouth, the smell of his skin, the feel of his hair, the warmth of his body. I brought my hands down from his face and moved them across his chest, feeling the soft outline of his muscle through the fabric of his shirt. He exhaled at my touch. His warm breath washed over my skin, tickling my frozen nose. Slipping my hands carefully down into his back pockets, I began to trail kisses across his jaw line and down his neck. Soon, he cupped one hand to my cheek and brought my lips back up to his.

Eventually, we broke apart and I sighed, leaning my forehead against his.

"We should get back to our friends before they start to wonder," I whispered, not wanting to move.

"I can't wait for tonight," Dan said, kissing the tip of my nose, which made butterflies erupt in my stomach. He looked directly into my eyes and his smoldering gaze made me blush.

"I'm looking forward to it," I said, brushing my lips against his one last time. And with that, I stepped out of Dan's arms and walked quickly back to PJ and Chris.

They were still there, now looking at different broom polishes. They had not even noticed that I had left.

"What are you smirking about," Chris asked when I walked up to them.

"What? Um, nothing. I dunno," I responded, quickly returning my expression to a more normal, not just-been-kissed-by-the-most-beautiful-guy-on-the-planet one.

"Yeah, you're right. I'll think I'll go with this one," PJ said, taking a rather dark but warm colored polish from the shelf. "It's a little pricy but I think it will be better for my broom. Did you guys want to get anything?"

"Nope," said Chris.

"Well, the new Nimbus would be nice, but that's not going to happen," I said, desperately trying to pull myself back down to earth, but a new image of Dan and I flying around on it together over the countryside made this difficult. Thoughts crept into my head of the feeling of Dan's arms wrapped tightly around me and his body pressed up against my back…. I shook my head to clear it.

Having no place else that we wanted to go, we decided to head back the castle. Most other students were still in Hogsmead so I saw no problem letting PJ and Chris into the Hufflepuff common room, where they promptly started a game of Exploding Snap. Though I loved being in Hogsmead, it was a relief to be back inside the warm common room by the fire. I tried to go through my potions book in an effort to come up with new ideas for our next potions meeting to impress Dan, but with PJ and Chris there I was too distracted so I gave up quickly and joined in the game. As the time ticked by, I got more and more excited which made it difficult to concentrate on the game. I narrowly avoided getting my eyebrows singed off twice.

I was thankful when Hufflepuffs began to stream back into the common room having returned from Hogsmead. Ushering PJ and Chris out, I ran to my dormitory to get ready. There was not much for me to do, but I felt better at least making an effort rather than just waiting around. I ran a comb through my hair vigorously, but unable to straighten my already perfectly straight hair any further I gave up. I paced nervously back and forth, obsessively checking my reflection in the mirror and thinking about what was to come. I did not know why I was so nervous. I was still firm on my commitment to take things slow. I wanted to make him want me enough to stay with me but I did not want to do anything that would make him feel uncomfortable enough to never want anything to do with me again. Tonight, I would do nothing more than hold him close and kiss him with everything I had. Just as I was drawing those lines in my head for what I would and would not do, Alex and Carrie walked into the dorm, hand in hand.

"Hey Phil," said Alex.

"Hey guys," I smiled, glad for the distraction. As much as I had wanted Chris and PJ to leave earlier so I could get ready, now that they were gone, I was becoming jittery with anticipation. "Did you guys have fun today?"

"Yeah, it was great," responded Carrie. "You?"

"Yeah. PJ, Chris and I had a great time. Oh, you should tell PJ to ask Zoe out," I said to Alex. "She's totally into him but he's too scared to make a move."

"Okay, will do," said Alex.

"They would make an… interesting couple," commented Carrie. "I always got the feeling she only likes guys for their looks. But maybe she has changed."

"Well either way, she's hot," said Alex, earning a punch in the arm from his girlfriend. "Well not as hot as you of course!" he said, kissing her on the cheek. She still glared at him but ruined the effect by giggling. As he took her hand and led her over to his bed, I took that as my cue to leave.

"I'll see you guys later then," I said, quickly exiting the room.

Glancing at my watch, I saw that I had plenty of time to make it up to the seventh floor. My body wanted to sprint up all the stairs and through the corridors but I made myself walk at a normal pace. I did not want to be exhausted or out of breath when I saw Dan. I made myself look at all the portraits and count every stair to try to distract myself. But before I had reached the third floor, my mind was already consumed with memories of our kiss earlier that day. These thoughts carried me all the way to the door opposite the painting of the trolls. I found the ornate door easily and stopped in front of it, taking a breath. Then I grabbed the door handle and pushed it open.

Dan was already there, waiting for me.

"Hey Dan," I said, unable to keep my face from splitting into a smile.

"Hi Phil," Dan breathed. He crossed the room in three long strides and before I knew what was happening, he had my head in his hands and his lips had crashed into mine. A wave of delight spread through my body. I had been waiting for this moment all day long and now that it was here, it was more perfect than I had imagined. Our meeting in Hogsmead had been nice. Pleasant. Delicate. But it had been nowhere near enough to be satisfying. It had only made me want him more. And it seemed like it had the same effect on Dan. His soft lips moved eagerly against mine. As I wound my fingers through his perfectly straight hair, his tongue asked for entry into my mouth and I quickly granted it.

I met his enthusiasm with equal passion, but it troubled me that he was being so forward. Some part of me thought that it might have been because he felt obligated in some way or that he was just doing what he thought I wanted him to do. I wanted him to want to be with me because he actually wanted to, not because he thought it would make his problems disappear. With this in mind, I said, "Dan, whatever happens tonight, if you feel uncomfortable at all just—"

"Phil, I know. I promise I will tell you if I want to stop," he said quickly. "Now just shut up and kiss me." And he devoured my mouth again.

Every thought I had about holding back tonight for Dan's benefit was instantly obliterated when I felt Dan's hands slide down my back and grab my ASs. I groaned as he pulled me closer to him, grinding his hips into mine.

"Someone's feeling a little naughty," I whispered as he began to plant deep kisses on my neck.

He winked and gave me a little shove so I fell backwards onto the couch. Climbing on top of me, he brought his lips back to mine and wound his hands through my hair, tugging gently. As he wound his tongue with mine and moved his hands firmly down over my chest, my arousal hit me like a brick. I knew that from this point forward, there was no turning back. The only thing to do was figure out from whom I would be getting my release tonight: him or myself.

An internal struggle raged within me. Dan was being so damn sexy, but I did not want to risk screwing things up him. As he unbuttoned the top button of my shirt and began to rub the tips of his fingers over this small, newly exposed area of flesh, my lust began to guide my logic in a different direction. I knew Dan was not a virgin; given the small size of the school it was difficult to sleep with anyone at Hogwarts and not have everyone find out. Dan had earned a little bit of a reputation for being a player already so I knew nothing would actually be that new to him. And it certainly seemed like he wanted me as much as I wanted him.

"Do you want to try something else tonight?" I asked when Dan finally broke the kiss, breathless.

He looked directly into my eyes as if searching for an answer there. I felt his heart rate quicken and his breathing became slightly more shallow.

"No pressure," I said, bringing my hand up and stroking his cheek. He leaned into my palm and closed his eyes for a moment.

"Yes," he breathed, opening his eyes.

The atmosphere changed instantaneously. Dan became submissive, awaiting my guidance. I pushed him off of me and rolled on top of him. I was no longer the innocent one that my friends believed me to be. I was the dominant one. I was the teacher. And Dan was about to learn a thing or two.

I leaned down and took his mouth in mine. Despite his acceptance of my dominance, he kissed me back even more passionately than before. Even though I wanted Dan now, I made a decision to take this slowly.

I began by slowing the kiss, making it deeper and more passionate than the quick, fiery, kisses we had shared before. His whole body responded to this change; he seemed to relax yet get more excited all at the same time. I could sense the onset of his arousal. I moved my hand slowly and deliberately down from his neck. Dan moaned into my mouth as I gently teased his nipple through his shirt. He brought his hands up to my shoulders as I continued to move my hand down his perfect body, my fingers trailing over his abs and across his waistband. I grabbed his butt and squeezed it in time with the rhythm of our kisses, eliciting yet another throaty moan from him. Sure he was not uncomfortable with where things were going, I let my hand continue its journey down Dan's body, stopping just above his knee when I could not reach any further. I then brought my hand around to the inside of his thigh and began to move my hand back up, squeezing and teasing this sensitive area as I went. As my hand got higher and higher, I moved more slowly, making my intentions clear.

When Dan realized where I was going, his breathing quickened. I let my hand rest just below the apex of his thighs, allowing him time to pull away if he wanted, but he continued to move his mouth against mine just as passionately, if not even more desperately. I slowly moved my hand to his crotch and gave it a slight squeeze. I felt him immediately stiffen under me and I broke our kiss, looking him directly in the eyes.

"Do you want me to stop?" I asked.

"No," he replied breathless, his eyes wide and giving his head a slight shake. "Don't stop." He pulled my head back down to his, thrusting his tongue into my mouth with a sense of desperation that I took as a wish for me to continue.

Inflamed with newfound desire, I began to massage his groin, smiling to myself when I felt him begin to grow hard under my touch. I felt his hand slide under my shirt and begin to explore my chest. His fingers raked through my thin chest hair and slid over the sensitive skin just below my navel. His confidence turned me on more than I already was. I felt myself begin to grow hard, desperate to break out of the material that confined me. He whimpered as I removed my hand from his groin and brought it around to his butt again. I chuckled at his reaction and repositioned myself so I was more on top of him.

I ground my hips into his, pulling his body closer to mine. Pressing the growing bulge in my pants against his, I vowed to make him realize just how earth-shattering being with another man could be. Our kisses grew more impassioned as we reveled in our mutual stimulation.

"Phil," Dan said, breaking the kiss, "I want you so bad."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"What do you think?" He grabbed my hand and brought it back down to his crotch, making me feel just how much he really needed me.

I smiled and gave him a quick squeeze before bringing both hands up to the collar of his shirt. He tangled his hands through my hair as I began to unbutton his shirt, trailing kisses down his chest as I went. When I reached his navel, I peaked up at him. He eyes were shut and his lips slightly parted; I marveled again at how perfect his face was. Dipping my tongue into his belly button, I saw his eyes fly open in shock, but they quickly fluttered closed as I continued downward with my kisses.

I slowly unbuckled his belt and dropped it to the floor. As I began to unbutton his pants, my hands became unsteady with nervous excitement. This was _Dan_. Brilliant, talented, powerful, gorgeous, Dan. And he was at my mercy.

As I began to slowly remove his pants, his hands left my hair and he grabbed onto the armrest of the couch above his head. Dropping his pants next to his belt on the floor, I returned my attention to his now almost free erection. I wrapped my hand around his length and gradually began to move up and down, massaging him through the thin fabric.

"Phil… please," Dan said quietly after a while. His voice was husky and rough and sexy as hell.

His eyes were screwed shut and he had a death grip on the armrest, but his voice let me know that he would not be complaining if I went further. I trailed my fingers over the edge of his boxers, making him squirm under me as my light touch tickled his skin. Hooking my thumbs under the fabric of his underwear, I gently pulled them off of his body, leaving Dan naked except for his unbuttoned shirt. Seeing him wanton and hard, his naked body stretched out in front of me made my own erection press even harder against the restraining fabric of my pants.

I placed my hand back on his long shaft, this time without the barrier of fabric, and began to pump my hand up and down again. A small moan escaped Dan's lips as he raised his hips slightly. He had completely surrendered to my touch; I felt powerful being in complete control of his pleasure.

Moving my hands to his hips, I lowered my mouth to him. I ran my tongue slowly up his length from base to tip, causing Dan to arch his back in pleasure. I repeated this motion again and again, swirling my tongue around his head when I reached it. His hips moved in time with my touch and he inhaled sharply when I gently scraped my teeth over his tip.

Taking him in my mouth, I began to suck, moving my head up and down over his length.

"Oh my god… Phil," Dan moaned with longing.

I could tell he was close, but I did not want him to come yet. Pulling back so that my tongue could trace over his head, I wrapped my hand around his length again, pumping hard enough to bring him to the brink but not enough to make him come. His moans grew louder and louder as I teased him.

"Phil! Please, Phil!" he managed to say in between incoherent whimpers of pleasure.

I took mercy on him and recaptured his length in my mouth, sucking hard. As I pumped my mouth up and down over his shaft, he matched my rhythm with thrusts from his hips, driving himself even deeper into my mouth.

"Oh god… Phil! I'm gonna come!" Dan shouted.

A second later, he exploded in my mouth, his body shuddering as his orgasm rolled through him.

I swallowed and traced kisses back up his flawless body. He was breathing hard, his eyes still closed, and his hands clung limply to the armrest. I placed a gentle kiss on his lips and his eyes fluttered open.

"Thank you," he said, looking me in the eyes. He released the armrest and tangled his hands in my hair again, pulling my lips back to his.

Suddenly, Dan flipped me over so that I was now underneath him and he was straddling my lap.

"What are you doing?" I asked, startled.

"I'm going to return the favor," he smiled, mischievously.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is so late! I had a little bit of writer's block but I think it turned out okay. Just a little warning about some smutty goodness. As always, let me know what you think please!**

"Dan, you really don't have to," I said.

"I told you, Slytherins aren't afraid to go after what we want. And right now, I want to pleasure you."

I was in no position to deny him.

He reached down and unbuttoned my shirt, tossing it on the floor. He then quickly shrugged his off of his shoulders and dropped it next to mine, leaving him completely naked. Leaning down, he recaptured my mouth in his. He kissed me passionately and gratefully. I had not noticed that his hands had slid onto my bare chest until a shock pulsed through my body when I felt him roll my nipples between his fingers. He removed his mouth from mine and placed it over one of my nipples. Swirling his tongue over it and sucking hard, he continued to tease my other one with his fingers. He gently tugged with his teeth, sending sensations of pleasure all the way down to my toes and causing my nipple to harden. Satisfied with his work on one side, he switched, capturing my other nipple in his mouth and teasing it with the same pattern of licking and sucking and nipping.

My nipples hard, he brought his face back up to mine and kissed me again. His hand confidently moved down my chest, put paused at my waist. I broke away and looked at him. There was a mixture of desire, uncertainty, and fear in his eyes.

I swept his somewhat sweaty hair out of his eyes and cupped my hand to his cheek. "You don't have to do this, Dan," I whispered gently. My body screamed in protest at my words; I was uncomfortably hard underneath my pants, begging Dan to give me the release that I sought.

"Shut up," he said softly, silencing me with another kiss.

His hand slowly made its way into my pants. He wrapped his large hand around me and used thumb to gently stroke my length in the confined space of my pants. The hand that was not busy in my pants roamed up my chest and began to massage the back of my neck. I wanted nothing more than to rip off my pants and shove his mouth down onto my shaft, but I restrained myself, letting him take this at his own pace.

At a tortuously slow speed, he removed my remaining clothes. First my belt, then my pants, then my boxers. I lay there, completely exposed underneath him as he rubbed his hands around my inner thighs, traveling around my most sensitive area, but not touching it. A pressure was beginning to build inside my abdomen as my body ached for his touch.

Finally, he wrapped his large hand around me and began to stroke up and down, first gently then with more strength and pressure. I tried to control my breath, but it started to come out in ragged gasps of need. "Dan, I'm close!" I managed to cry out.

The words had barely escaped my lips when I felt his hand leave me. My eyes shot open in disbelief. He climbed off the couch and began to rummage through our pile of clothes. Stretched out naked on the couch and throbbing painfully with need, I watched him take something from his pocket and put it in his mouth. He chewed for a second then swallowed, grinning mischievously.

My confusion disappeared when he remounted me and dragged his tongue up my length. Behind the sensations of pleasure, I could feel the tingle of a mint sensation from the sweet he has just eaten. He blew gently on my shaft which was now wet with a mixture of my own pre-come and Dan's saliva. The sensation of his minty breath on me sent shivers of pleasure down my spine.

I saw him smile at my reaction as he kissed my tip and let his tongue trail slowly over my slit. My eyes rolled back in my head and I squeezed his shoulders in pleasure. Suddenly, he took me in his mouth. He managed to entirely consume my admittedly rather large length. He must have absolutely no gag reflex. Impressive.

He sucked and swirled his tongue over me as he pulled up, before plunging back down onto me. Again and again he thrust his mouth down onto me and I could feel my head hit the back of his throat. I tangled my hands through his hair and began to move my hips in time with his thrusts, not wanting the pleasure to stop, but desperately seeking release. I could no longer control the moans that were escaping my lips, but they only served to make Dan go harder and faster.

"Dan, I'm gonna come!" I cried in a constrained voice as all the muscles in my body tensed in preparation for my release.

Dan just moved faster and harder in response, causing me to explode inside him within seconds. My body trembled as my orgasm shot from my core to my limbs. I saw Dan smile as he swallowed.

I was lightheaded as I came down from my high. Pulling Dan back up on top of me, I rolled over and wrapped my arms around him so that we were lying face to face on the couch.

"You learn fast," I said.

"It's because I have a good teacher," he responded.

I kissed him gently on his nose and grabbing the blanket that was draped over the back of the couch, I threw it over us, and we let ourselves drift off to sleep in each other's arms.

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I woke up the next morning to see Dan curled around me. I was lying on my back and Dan had one arm draped over my torso and his head was curled up on my chest. One of his legs had managed to wedge itself between mine. A lazy smile spread across my faces as I recalled the events of the night before. I almost could not believe it but the evidence was literally staring me in the face. The blanket had slipped off of our upper bodies during the night and I greedily ran my eyes along Dan's exposed back. His golden tan skin seemed to have a faint glow that somehow matched the honey scent of his hair. I slowly raised my hand to grab a lock his hair between my fingers.

As I gently played with Dan's soft hair, he slowly stirred.

"Good morning, sunshine," I said softly when he had moved enough for me to know he was awake.

He tilted his head up and peaked at me through half-closed eyes. "Hi," he said, quietly. Carefully disentangling himself from me and pulling the blanket up to his eyes he said, "Did we really… last night…?"

"Mmhm," I responded, smiling. I could tell he was blushing under the blanket, but there was a smile in his eyes as well.

"Oh…"

"Well don't sound too excited," I said, bringing myself to eyelevel with him and scooting closer.

"Its just… are we together now?" he asked.

"Well, do you want to be together?" The idea of being officially with Dan made my stomach do a little flip. I had not seriously considered it until now, but of course I wanted him to be okay with it before I agreed to anything.

"Do you want to be together?" he responded with the same question, giving me a cheeky smile.

"You tell me," I said, poking him in the ribs with one finger under the blanket.

"Phil!" he laughed, flailing his arms and slapping my hand away.

"Are you really that ticklish?" I giggled, surprised at his unexpectedly violent reaction.

"Yes! Don't do that!"

"What? This?" I said innocently, poking him again.

"Stop it!" he laughed, spazzing as much as he had before.

"But you still haven't answered my question," I said. I quickly moved both of my hands to his ribs and began to tickle him in earnest. He squirmed underneath me, his legs jerking back and forth and his arms desperately trying to push mine off of him while trying to keep the blanket from slipping off his body. His loud laughter was infections and I never wanted it to stop.

"Fine! Yes!" He managed to get out in between his fits of laughter.

"Yes, what?" I asked, slowing my hands and allowing him to breathe.

"Yes, I want to be with you," he said looking into my eyes.

I could not keep the smile from spreading across my face. "You really want to be my boyfriend?"

"Yes."

I looked into his eyes and I could see that behind the tears of laughter, there was sincerity.

"Then yes, I would say we are together now," I whispered. I curled my hand behind his neck and brought my lips to his. As our lips moved in perfect synchrony, a sense of wonderment and peace settled over us.

"Phil," he breathed against my lips.

"Yeah?"

"I would still rather not have everyone at school find out about this… about us."

"I understand," I said. "I feel the same way."

"Good."

As I looked at him I saw a mutual understanding. We were comfortable being together, but in such a small school it would be difficult to escape ridicule if anyone objected to our relationship. Though I was not ashamed in any way of being gay, it was easier to not have to deal with the people at school who might see it as wrong or abnormal. Having other people know only made things more complicated for the both of us. I was glad that he felt the same way and I did not need to explain my feelings to him. I made to bring my lips back to his, but he stopped me.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Morning breath," he giggled.

I just rolled my eyes at him but laughter soon spilled out of my mouth and mixed with his in the morning air.

When our laughter died down Dan sat up, throwing his feet over the side of the couch. He stretched and I watched as the muscles in his back elongated, rippling through his perfect skin. He rummaged through the pile of our clothes that were strewn on the floor and pulled on his boxers then his pants. I let my eyes rake shamelessly over his body as he redressed.

"Enjoying the view?" he asked as he turned around and noticed my unabashed stare as he buttoned up his shirt.

"Of course," I said, winking at him.

As he finished the top button, he sat back down next to me on the couch where I was still lying, half exposed. He placed one hand on my chest and said, "Thanks. For last night."

"Anytime. Seriously," I smiled back.

He leaned in and kissed my forehead, his fingers digging into my chest gently, but suddenly pulled back.

"What?" I asked, curiously, seeing a gleam of excitement in his eyes.

"Stay here," he said, getting up and picking up his cloak.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to go bring my new _boyfriend_ breakfast in bed."

A smile immediately split across my face. I could not figure out which was more adorable: the fact that he and thought of bringing me breakfast, or his excitement at doing it.

"I won't move a muscle," I said, adopting an upright-seated position and making myself go motionless, and which he chuckled.

"I hope you like toast. I don't know what I'll be able to fit under my cloak."

"Just hurry back," I said.

And with that he slipped out the door.

I figured I should make myself look decent so I relaxed from my motionless position and began to pull on my clothes.

_Boyfriend_. The word still rung in my ears. I could not believe it. Dan. My _boyfriend_. I never thought I would be in a relationship at Hogwarts until 10 minutes ago when Dan asked if we were together. I truthfully been perfectly happy being single, but after the idea was planted in my head of being in a relationship, I do not think I would have been happy had he said he did not want to be with me. Again, it dawned on me how lucky I was. Not that I believed in it, but I thought I would have to ask if my stars were aligned during my next Divinations lesson. That could be the only explanation for having the fortune of being in this room, putting my clothes back on after a passion-filled night, and waiting for Dan to return with my breakfast. It was too good to be true.

Dan returned quickly with our breakfast, plopping back down on the couch next to me. As we nibbled our toast, we chatted casually. Even though we had only really met two weeks ago, I found I was very comfortable talking to him. Conversation flowed easily and we had the same sense of humor. He could easily have become my best friend if he were not already my boyfriend.

I learned that he had a brother named Adrian who was a first year. Apparently, they did not get along too well. Dan thought that Adrian was too obsessed with blood and was too intent on redeeming the family of the disgrace of their great grandfather's marriage to a muggle, which muddied their rather pure bloodline.

I told Dan about how I was muggle born and about my older brother who was not a wizard. Dan found it exceptionally funny when I told him that my brother was a lawyer. He tried the word out several times and could not stop giggling. His loud laughter was infectious and we soon lapsed into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

I do not think there could have been a better way to spend that Sunday morning.

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Monday afternoon Transfiguration was a rude awakening. I of course was extremely distracted and could not help but start day-dreaming every thirty seconds. Alex had to poke me in the ribs a few times to get me to focus because McGonagall was beginning to notice. We were still working on vanishing spells but were beginning to move onto bigger objects. McGonagall made Alex bring around a box full of animals for us to choose from. I ended up with a turtle and he had a guinea pig. As we started practicing, I was thankful that I chose a slow creature because it would doubtlessly have been able to escape off the desk because of how little attention I was paying to it.

"_Evanesco!"_ Alex said beside me. His guinea pig squeaked but otherwise had no other sign of being changed.

"Close, Mr. Day," McGonagall said, making her way over to our desk. "Try it with more emphasis on the third syllable though."

"_Evanesco!_" Alex said again. This time, his guinea pig turned bright purple. He peaked up at McGonagall, clearly worried at his lack of success.

"A few more tries and I think you will have it," she said, encouragingly. "Now lets see you try, Mr. Lester."

I cleared my throat and tried to focus my mind on the task at hand. "_Evanesco!_" I said, without much conviction. Nothing happened.

"You are not trying hard enough, Mr. Lester," she reprimanded. "Clear your mind. Focus. Mr. Howell always closes his eyes briefly before he performs any advanced magic. Perhaps try that. It seems to work for him."

A shock ran through my body when she said Dan's surname. Even though I had been thinking about him already, it was still odd to hear his name come from someone else. It reminded me of the reality of my relationship with Dan. Since we had departed from the room on Sunday afternoon, everything before had felt like a dream. McGonagall managed to remind me that he was indeed not a figment of my imagination.

"Yes professor," I managed to say.

"Take a second to focus and try again," she instructed.

I had no idea how I was supposed to focus now. I had already been distracted before she came over and mentioned Dan. But now, vivid memories of our night together were coming flooding back and I had to breathe deeply to keep the nature of my thoughts from becoming embarrassingly obvious.

I tried desperately to clear my mind and focus on the task at hand—making the turtle vanish.

"_Evanesco!"_ I said. Unsurprisingly, nothing happened.

"Well, I think you need to practice a little more for homework."

I groaned inwardly as McGonagall walked away and Alex gave me a sympathetic look. Remembering that PJ said he was having advanced lessons in Transfiguration, I planned to ask him for help.

Thankfully McGonagall ended class soon after and Alex and I descended into the dungeons together with the rest of the Hufflepuffs. Shortly after we had entered the classroom, the Slytherins followed.

"Today we will be brewing the Draught of Peace," said Slughorn when everyone had settled down. "Mr. Lee, do you know what it does?"

Caspar Lee, a Slytherin who took particular pleasure in tormenting me during Potions, shrugged. "Makes peace?" he suggested.

"Can you be a little more specific please, Mr. Lee?" Slughorn prompted.

"I don't know. Why don't you ask Phil? He always knows everything," Caspar said, snarkily.

I rolled my eyes, not in the mood for another day of the Slytherins' snide remarks.

"Well it seems as though you leave me with no choice but to ask a more qualified student," Slughorn responded with equal vehemence. "And ten points from Slytherin for not being prepared and having done the reading." This made all of the Slytherins who had begun to whisper after Caspar's comment go immediately silent. "Mr. Lester, do you know the answer?"

"It's used to reduce anxiety and agitation," I replied quietly. Though Slughorn had good intentions at reprimanding Caspar, I knew that this would only antagonize the Slytherins further and I was going to have to be wary of my potion potentially blowing up in my face.

"Thank you, Mr. Lester. Ten points to Hufflepuff."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Caspar roll his eyes. I did not know exactly what made him hate me so much. I supposed it was just the fact that he was struggling in Potions and I was a lot better than him. Whenever he was having a particularly difficult time with a potion, I knew I had to prepare for him to try to tamper with mine or make me make a mistake in some way. He used my "failure" as a way to distract from his own. The rest of the Slytherins joined in because, well, they were Slytherins, and making peoples' lives difficult was what they did best. I did not resent them for it, but it was greatly annoying and frustrating to be half way through a really difficult potion only to have it rendered unusable by one of their pranks.

"The instructions will be on the board," Slughorn said, interrupting my thoughts. "Now, they are very detailed. Every ingredient must be added in the exact order and amounts specified. If you do it correctly, it should be turquoise blue and have a slight silver vapor coming from it. If you need any help, you are welcome to ask for it. But as long as you have done the reading, it should be manageable," he said, looking pointedly at Caspar who just glared back at him.

I went to the cupboard to gather the necessary ingredients with the other students then came back and lit my cauldron next to Alex.

"I can't believe you haven't challenged him to a duel or something yet," said Alex, referring to Caspar. "Especially after what he did last time."

"He's not worth it," I responded. "And the last thing I want is the rest of the Slytherin house to turn against me.

"Yeah, but if you hurt him badly enough, they would all be too scared to ever touch you again."

I laughed. "Well, they wouldn't be able to either because I would be expelled."

"Oh yeah, that would be a little bit of a problem," he laughed too.

"But if I made it look like an accident, it just might work," I joked.

"That's the spirit!" Alex said, clapping me on the back.

"I can I see it now," I said, pausing in the middle of grinding my moonstone into a finer powder. "I'll hex him in the corridor then I'll put his wand in a statues hand and make it look like be did it."

Alex just laughed at my ridiculous plan. "Yeah, or you could shoot a trip hex his way when he's walking down the stairs and send him and his big head crashing down the stairs."

"That could work," I said, pretending to be debating between the ideas. "But broken bones can be fixed in a heartbeat. I would want something more permanent. Like making his ears vanish."

"What?" laughed Alex. "Of all possible permanent curses you go with ear removal?"

"Well I don't want to be too cruel."

"You really wouldn't hurt a fly would you?" laughed Alex.

"Flies have feelings too!" I pouted. It was common knowledge among my friends that I had a moral objection to hurting any living thing, whether it be a human, an animal, or a plant.

Alex continued to laugh at my expression as I went back to grinding my moonstone. Satisfied with its consistency, I added the required amount to the potion and waited until it turned the proper shade of green then began to stir. When the potion turned blue, I repeated the process, letting it turn purple then pink as described by Slughorn's instructions on the board. Glancing over at Alex, I saw that he was struggling with his potion. It was more red then pink and he was muttering over his cauldron in frustration. This was one of the things I liked about working next to him. He knew I was good at potions but he did not constantly bother me for help when he was struggling as some of the other Hufflepuffs did. Instead, he would do his best to figure it out himself before he asked.

"Try adding a counterclockwise stir," I suggested to him.

He did as I said and the potion suddenly turned the correct color. "Thanks mate," Alex smiled.

"No problem," I responded, adding the syrup of hellebore to my potion. As it began to simmer I prepared my porcupine quills carefully. The directions specified that we had to shake them "vigorously," so I did just that.

Forty minutes later, I had followed almost every instruction perfectly and was three steps away from completing my potion. It was in its most volatile stage, a sickly shade of gray and I quickly prepared the remainder of the porcupine quills. I was solely focused on crushing them into the finest powder as fast as possible when I suddenly felt a sharp burning sensation on my hand. I screamed out in pain and saw that my potion had splashed out of my cauldron and all over the desk. Alex had just narrowly escaped its path and was looking at me with a horrified expression on his face.

"Phil, I think you need to go to the hospital wing," he said quietly. The rest of the room had gone silent at my scream.

Looking down at my hand I saw that it appeared as if the flesh was melting off.

"Professor?" I said, alarmed.

"Yes, go!" he said, looking as horrified as Alex. "Mr. Day, please accompany him."

As I rushed out of the room, I saw Caspar hiding his face behind his friend and shaking with laughter. My anger at what he did distracted me from my pain. I had been so close to finishing my potion and it had been so perfect. Of course Caspar would screw it up just to get back at me for his losing ten points, even though it had not been my fault in the first place. As I sprinted my way to the hospital wing, all I wanted to do was go back to Potions and punch Caspar in the face.

"Some of his potion got spilled on him," Alex explained frantically to the healer.

"Come. Sit," she instructed. "What potion?" she asked, taking a look at my hand.

"Draught of Peace, right before adding the last porcupine quills," I responded.

"I have just the thing," she said, and hurried off.

Taking a closer look at my hand, I saw that it really was a ghastly sight. The skin was bubbling slightly and looked more liquid than solid. I quickly averted my eyes so I would not get sick. The nurse thankfully returned with a bottle in hand and, grabbing my own hand, poured the liquid over my skin. The intense burning immediately disappeared and my skin lost its liquid quality, though it still looked a little deformed.

"Thank you so much," I said, relieved.

"Don't mention it. Just try to be a little more careful next time. I don't have remedies on hand for every injury. Next time it might be a little more permanent."

"So my skin will heal completely then?"

"Yes," she said, bandaging my hand. "Just leave this bandage on for two days and you should be back to normal."

"Perfect."

"I'll bet pushing Caspar down the stairs doesn't sound like such a bad idea anymore, huh?" Alex asked as the nurse bustled away to attend to someone in the bed next to me.

"Yeah, or pushing him off the astronomy tower," I said, darkly. "I'm so fed up with all of their crap! Those fucking Slytherins are going to kill me some day."

"They probably won't get the chance," Alex said, hiding his surprise at my swearing. "I'll bet Slughorn went mental."

"I sure hope so. If they don't have negative points, I'm going to complain to Dumbledore."

As I stood up I heard the whole castle rumble as students began to leave their classes for dinner. Alex and I slipped out of the hospital wing and joined the flow of students down to the Great Hall.

"Alex! Phil!" We turned around to see Carrie's bushy blond hair bobbing hurriedly through the throng of students toward us. Her face was contorted in some strange combination of concern and giddiness. "How is your hand?" she asked.

"Its great. Should be better in a few days, thanks."

"You should have seen Slughorn once you left! He completely lost it! He immediately cleared your cauldron and found a dungbomb," Carrie said quickly. "No one would say who did it so he questioned everyone individually and one of the Slytherins eventually told on Caspar. Slughorn took about a bazillion points off and Caspar pulled his wand on the kid who said it was him, but Slughorn disarmed him and then he took a bunch of more points off and Caspar has detention every night until Slughorn decides to stop. It was mad!"

"Fucking hell, I knew it was Caspar," I muttered under my breath in exasperation.

"At least Slughorn got him though," said Alex.

"Yeah, I guess."

When we walked into the Great Hall, I was still fuming over what Caspar did but I could not help but smile at the sight of the green hourglass being nearly empty and the look of shock that was plastered onto every Slytherin's face. It was almost worth the pain, frustration, and humiliation just to see how distraught their entire house was…. Almost. But knowing that they would all blame Caspar for their sudden drop from first place to dead last made it better. And I was made even happier by the fact that Caspar did not make it do dinner. I imagined him in detention or standing in Dumbledore's office with Slughorn, being forced to explain what he did. Though I knew he would not actually be expelled, I reveled in the thought of him packing his bags and watching Dumbledore kick him out of the castle.

Despite these thoughts, however, I was still rather grumpy when we left the Great Hall after finishing dinner, mostly due to the fact that the bandage on my hand had made it very difficult to eat and it was serving as a constant reminder of Caspar and his irrational hatred toward me. As we walked back to the Hufflepuff common room, I noticed that my bag felt lighter than normal. Glancing inside, I realized that I was missing my transfiguration book.

"You guys go ahead, I'll meet you back at the Common Room," I said, exasperatedly to Alex and Carrie before turning around and trudging back to the Great Hall.

Sure enough, the textbook was right where we had been sitting. Picking it up and angrily stuffing it into my bag, I marched back out of the Great Hall and restarted my journey to the dormitory. Just as I began to descend the first staircase, I heard my name being called out from behind me. The scowl that had been plastered on my face suddenly shattered and was replaced with a smile. I knew that voice.

I turned around to see Dan striding toward me. I could not help but marvel at his perfect features as he approached me.

"Have you seen Slughorn? He said he wanted to have another meeting on Friday," Dan said, smiling at me.

"No I hadn't" I responded. "Thanks."

"How's your hand?" asked Dan, his expression turning concerned.

"Oh, you heard?" I asked, a bitter edge seeping into my voice. "It's alright."

"Look, I'm really sorry for what Caspar did. And I'm sorry that you got hurt."

"Don't apologize. It's not like it's your fault."

"I know, but I just feel like _someone_ in Slytherin should apologize and I know that _he's_ not going to."

"Thanks," I said. Even though his words did not change anything, I felt a lot lighter and it seemed as though the incident in Potions were inconsequential. Just being in Dan's presence, seeing his smile, hearing him speak, made it feel as though a giant burden had been lifted from my shoulders. And the fact that I could look at him and know he was my boyfriend, even if I could not announce it to the world, was like icing on a cake. All I wanted in that moment was to kiss his tender lips, but, glancing around, I saw that there were still too many students out to have any chance at a moment of privacy.

As I walked the rest of the way back to my dormitory, I felt as though I were walking on air. I no longer felt the need to strangle someone; instead, I felt the urge to skip and dance through the corridors. Fortunately, I was able to suppress this urge. But I still could not keep the smile from spreading across my face as with every step I thought of a different aspect of Dan that I adored.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: First I would like to say thank you for all the kind reviews! Second, I want to make sure everyone knows that how I characterize the other youtubers in here in no way reflects how I actually see them. I absolutely adore Caspar, I don't ship PJ and Zoe, etc. but I'm just trying to work with what I've got so I can move the Phan plot forward. And third, I'm so sorry this chapter took so long! I've been super busy with exams and everything. I should be able to write more frequently now because everything is almost over (hopefully). Oh, and… this is the usual warning for some phan smut ;) **

"So what exactly are you having a problem with?"

"Everything. But right now, vanishing spells." I had made good on my promise to myself to ask PJ to tutor me after the last Transfiguration lesson. We both had a free period that Tuesday morning so he had agreed to help me.

"What happened last time you tried the spell?" PJ asked.

"Well, I was trying to make a turtle vanish and nothing happened," I responded.

"Nothing?"

"Nope."

"Didn't even change color?"

"Nope."

"Hmm… well, have you tried it with a less complex animal? It could be that the turtle's shell was making it more difficult."

"I managed to do a snail earlier in the year. But I don't know if I could even do that anymore."

"Okay, well that's a start," said PJ. "Lets see if we can go and find a snail, shall we?" He stood up and I quickly followed suit. We walked together out of the castle onto the grounds. As it was a mid-winter morning, it was rather cold but thankfully there was not too much snow on the ground so we made it to the edge of the forest quickly. However, with the weather, I was doubtful any snails would be out and about. Fortunately, PJ was not being quite as stupid as I was and was not interested in searching for a snail, so he just said, "_Accio snail!_"

Two snails came zooming out of the forest and into his hand. "Lets save these for a bit," he said, placing the snails on a branch of a nearby tree and grabbing a few leaves off the branches instead. "Its generally easier to vanish inanimate objects, so lets practice with these first."

"Okay," I said. I was fairly confident I would be able to make the leaves vanish; they were much less complex than snails and its not like they could walk away from me.

"Here you go," PJ said, handing me a leaf.

I took it from him, pulled out my wand, and muttered, "_Evanesco!_"

The leaf vanished immediately from my hand.

Despite my previous confidence, I was still proud of myself for this accomplishment.

"Great," said PJ. "That was perfect. Now, what were you thinking about when you did that?"

"I don't know," I responded. "Just making the leaf vanish, I guess."

"Okay, try again with this one and focus on what you are actually thinking about this time," he said handing me a second leaf.

I took it and stared at it for a second before proceeding. This time, as I raised my wand, I tried to be conscious of what I was thinking about. I realized that as the same time I cast the spell, I was visualizing the entire leaf vanishing as though the outer part vanished first, then the inner veins of the leaf.

When I told this to PJ, he said, "Good. So you picture it vanishing from the outside in. Do it one more time, just to be sure."

As soon as I had vanished the third leaf, PJ snapped a twig off of the tree and handed it to me. "Now try this," he said.

I took the stick, visualized the bark disappearing, then the interior wood, and made the entire thing vanish into thin air without any difficulty.

"Perfect," said PJ, nodding in approval. "Lets try the snail now, yeah?"

He reached up and plucked one of the snails off the branch he had put them on and handed it to me. I took it slightly tentatively. Though I had been successful before with snails, I really wanted to be able to do it now that it seemed as though PJ may have unlocked the secret to my problem with the spell.

I raised my want yet again and pictured the shell disappearing along with the body and slime. "_Evanesco!_" I said.

The snail vanished immediately. I wanted to jump up and down at having achieved this on my first try, but not wanting to lose my cool in front of PJ, I managed to restrain myself. Instead I just smiled up at him proudly.

"Good job," he chuckled, probably able to tell that I could barely contain myself. "One more time," he said, handing me the second snail.

I took it and it had disappeared within seconds. "PJ, you're a genius!" I said.

"Well, I still haven't gotten you to do anything you couldn't do before, so lets hold off on the genius stuff for now," he said, but he was obviously flattered by the complement. That was one of the things I really liked about being friends with PJ; he really was a genius be he was so humble about it. "Maybe you should try something with a little more structure."

"A grasshopper?"

"Sure," he chuckled again at my slightly random suggestion. "_Accio grasshopper!_" PJ caught the grasshopper in midair as it zoomed toward him and he handed it to me.

I took the struggling creature in my hand and focused solely on making it vanish. "_Evanesco!_" I said for the seventh time that day.

Much to my disappointment, I was left with two legs kicking feebly in my hand.

"Almost. But were you focusing on the entire thing? Or were you just thinking about the body?"

"Oh, I guess just the body."

"Another try?" He summoned another grasshopper and handed it to me.

This time I remembered to think about the legs and antenna vanishing as well. I cast the spell again and was left with nothing in my hand.

"Great!" said PJ. "Now let's see if you can do a mouse, yeah?"

"Okay." I was now excited to try the spell on more complex things. Though I knew it was a false sense of confidence, I felt like I would be able to make anything vanish now that I knew how to think about the spell.

"_Accio mouse!_" said PJ. "Ah, good. I was hoping there would be one nearby," he said as a mouse came zooming into his outstretched hand.

"It's so cute!" I said, as I took it from him. Suddenly, I did not want to make the poor creature vanish.

"Phil…"

"What?"

"You have to practice somehow," said PJ, having realized that I was reluctant to harm such an adorable little creature. "And its not like it actually hurts it. It just makes it vanish."

"Alright. Fine," I said, trying to ignore the desperate squeaks of the mouse that was trying to escape my grasp. I shook my head to clear it and tried to picture the mouse disappearing from the outside in. First its feet, then its fur, then its skin, then the muscle, and then the organs. I raised my wand and said, "_Evanesco!_"

I squealed in delight as the mouse vanished into thin air. "PJ you did it! Can I call you a genius now?"

"No, _you_ did it and I guess you could call me a genius," he said in with mock superciliousness. "Care to try again?"

"Yes please!"

He summoned another mouse and gave it to me. I quickly made it vanish and he replaced it with a third.

We continued in this manner until the end of our free period, gradually working through more and more complex animals. I managed to make a rather large bird vanish and even conquered a few turtles. By the time we went back to the castle I was confident in my ability to use the vanishing spell and could not wait to get to transfiguration to show McGonagall that I was actually competent.

When we returned to the castle we were immediately enveloped in welcome warmth of the Entrance Hall and a high pitched giggling met our ears. We both turned to see Zoe and her friends gathered around the bottom of the staircase and shooting glances in our direction.

"Go!" I said.

"What?"

"Go talk to her!" I insisted.

"What? But… fine," he relented. "You're coming with me though."

"Fine. Lets go," I said, nudging him discretely.

We walked over to the group of girls and I noticed that PJ's whole demeanor had changed. He was standing slightly taller and giving off an air of confidence that he did not usually exhibit. As he ran his hand through his hair, I realized that although he was humble, he really knew how to work it when he wanted to.

"Hey girls," he said when we reached them.

"Hi PJ," Zoe piped up immediately, the other girls letting out a chorus of giggles behind her. She shot them a reprimanding look but they did not seem to care.

"How are you?" PJ asked politely, always a gentleman.

"Fantastic," Zoe responded enthusiastically. "We were actually just talking about going to the Ravenclaw Quidditch practice later today. You guys are practicing, right?"

"Yeah, we've got to get ready for the match against Hufflepuff on Friday."

"You guys know there's no point in practicing, right? We're gonna beat you anyway," I said.

"Oh, shut up Phil," he said, punching me teasingly in the arm.

"I thought you guys were down a beater," Zoe said to me.

"We found a decent replacement," I responded. "Even without our normal team, Ravenclaw is going to need all the practice they can get."

"Well we are going to do the best we can today," said PJ, "assuming the filthy Slytherins don't try to steal the pitch again."

"Oh no! Did they do that before," Zoe frowned.

"Yeah, Jack and Finn can weasel their way into anything. They're so 'charming'," he said, making air quotes, clearly frustrated by the twins' uncanny ability to convince teachers to give them whatever they wanted.

"Those little brats are so annoying," Zoe complained, sympathetically.

"Not gonna lie, most of the time I just want to curse them into oblivion."

"But I'm sure if they steal your practice again, you could charm your way into getting it back," she said, twirling a piece of her hair around in her fingers, "with those big green eyes of yours."

"Yeah Peej," I said, "You've got girls all over you. Getting a teacher to agree with you should be easy."

Zoe and her friends blushed but otherwise seemed unfazed.

"We'll see if it comes to that," said PJ. "Anyway, I've got to run. My next class is in the north tower and I don't particularly fancy being late. But I'll see you later?" he asked, looking a Zoe.

"Most definitely," she smiled back at him.

I nodded to the girls as we walked away up the stairs.

"I should listen to you more often," PJ said once we made it out of earshot.

"You gonna ask her out?"

"Pushy, pushy," PJ teased. "I'll ask her out when I want to ask her out, don't you worry about it."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

My transfiguration lesson later the next day was nothing less than fun. The look on McGonagall's face when I made a rabbit disappear on the first try was priceless. Her reprimanding look from last lesson had turned into one of awe. Alex and Carrie were speechless but when McGonagall was out of earshot I, not wanting to take credit for my sudden mastery of the spell, told them how PJ had helped me.

The next day at lunch I found PJ and thanked him for his help and told him about McGonagall's reaction. He was flattered by my profuse thanks and congratulated me on my success. When I asked him about Zoe, he said that they had hung out after practice and talked for a while.

"And no, I didn't ask her out yet," PJ said before I could ask.

"Why not?"

"Because I got scared."

"Well, we are going to find a way for you to do it, okay? Maybe you and Chris can tag team it."

PJ agreed to talk to Chris about it before heading off to class.

Talking to PJ about his practice made me remember that the Slytherins were supposed to be practicing that day and I was struck by a sudden idea—that it would be fun to go watch Dan practice. I loved watching him play in actual matches but it would be different at practice without the entire school there watching and shouting and judging me for rooting for Slytherin. I would still have to make sure no one saw me; as a member of another Quidditch team, I could be accused of spying. But mostly I wanted to make sure no one found out I was there to watch Dan because that would hurt both of our reputations. Even so, I was desperate for classes to end for the day so I could go down to the pitch to watch.

When I was finally dismissed from Charms, I walked as fast as I could without drawing attention to myself down to the pitch and hid myself in the stands. No one would have been able to see me unless they walked right up to me, but I still had a pretty good view of the pitch.

As I waited for the team to take to the air, I pulled out my wand and made little objects around me vanish to practice the spell. There was a lot of trash in the stands and I felt like I was being a good person as I made it all slowly disappear.

Suddenly seven green and silver blurs zoomed into the air and began to circle the pitch, making a few warm-up laps. They zoomed by me so fast I could not tell one player from the other. They really were excellent flyers; they maintained strict formation and kept a consistent speed. When they eventually slowed down, I spotted Dan who was taller than the rest and fairly easy to make out. I also saw Jack and Finn and thought I recognized one of the beaters as a boy named Regulus who I thought was a sixth year, but I was not sure.

The captain whose name I did not know blew a whistle and shouted some orders. The keeper immediately took his position while Jack, Finn, and the captain who was the third chaser took turns taking shots. The beaters began to hit in inanimate bludger back and forth between themselves, a drill which our beaters often did at practice as well.

But all I could watch was Dan who had released the snitch and was circling his team while he waited for it to fly away. The way he flew was so elegant and graceful. He had complete control over every little adjustment. It was obvious he was a natural and he felt entirely comfortable on a broomstick. His total mastery of the sport was nothing less than incredibly sexy.

Suddenly, Dan shot up into the air, presumably to look for the snitch. Coming to a standstill high above his team, he looked down at the pitch and slowly began to circle again, resembling a hawk hunting his prey. A few moments later he launched himself into a dive, transforming into a green and silver blur as he sped across the pitch. By the time I was able to locate the snitch myself, his arm was already stretched out, mere feet from the fluttering golden ball.

"Nice one, Dan!" the captain called from across the pitch as Dan did a little loop-de-loop in the air in excitement at having caught the snitch so quickly.

Dan released the snitch again and shot back over to his team to watch them for a bit while the snitch disappeared. As he watched the chasers take turns shooting, I could not help but watch them also. I felt guilty about watching them so closely, as I was the keeper of an opposing team, but nonetheless I took note of how each of them played. The twins had a specific way they tried to fake out the keeper before they took a shot. They were both very skilled at shooting at the opposite hoop that their body position made it look like they intended to shoot at. Though they were good at it, now that I knew this trick, I knew that I would have no trouble blocking most of their shots.

As Dan soared back up into the air to look for the snitch, my eyes followed him and tracked his path through the air as he began to circle once more. It took him a bit longer this time, but eventually he dove, streaking right through the rest of his team and making a particularly spectacular grab at the snitch just a few feet off the ground.

As I sat through their practice, I watched Dan whenever he was hunting the snitch. But whenever he was watching his team, I did that as well. My competitiveness and hatred of the Slytherins overpowered my guilt at discovering their secrets in this way. Whenever I felt the need to look away because I had discovered something new about their strategies, Caspar's face swam into the back of my mind and made me want to keep watching so that even if I could not crush him, I could crush his House's chance of winning the Quidditch Cup.

With Caspar and my injured hand in mind, I studied everything I could about their strategies and how each of them played the game individually. I noted how the third chaser would often come in lower before shooting at the higher goalpost, how the beaters were especially good at aiming but did not have a huge amount of power behind their swings, how Jack and Finn often worked on opposite sides of the field, leaving the third chaser in the middle.

As I watched the beaters, the one who was not Regulus dropped the bludger and plunged down to retrieve it. Regulus waited there in the air and his attention turned to Dan when he spotted him hurdling towards him and the snitch. I watched as Regulus suddenly darted up and snatched the snitch just as Dan was about to make a grab for it. Dan was forced to do a quick roll to avoid skewering the beater but recovered quickly and with a smile on his face.

"Good one, Reg," he laughed.

The captain was not as amused however and began to blow her whistle loudly and started shouting at Regulus. Her first few words were incomprehensible because her anger had made her voice shoot up a few octaves, but gradually I began to be able to distinguish what she was saying.

"That only interferes with practice! You had your chance last year and you blew it!"

"It was only a joke," Regulus said, handing the snitch that he had grabbed from right in front of Dan back to him.

"Calm down, Lucinda," Dan said to the captain. "Its not like I got hurt. And its good practice to keep me on my toes."

"Back off, Dan. He needs to learn his place," she reprimanded him.

Dan, clearly not wanting to pick a fight with his captain, flew over to Jack and Finn who were watching the scene unfold from a safer distance.

"You were seeker before and now you aren't, Black. Dan beat you out of it fair and square and if you can't deal with that, then maybe you shouldn't be on the team at all."

"No, sorry. Come on, Lucidia. Don't do this."

"Just get back to practice and stop acting like you are trying to prove something."

Regulus rolled his eyes but did as he was told, signaling for the other beater to hit the bludger to him. Dan quickly released the snitch and went back to practicing. Jack and Finn exchanged glances but otherwise remained silent on the issue. It was rather astonishing to see how much the rest of the team respected—or feared—their captain. But as it was the Slytherins, I was not altogether surprised that the team worked like that. Lucidia was probably pureblood too.

A few more spectacular catches from Dan, a couple more goals from Jack and Finn, and a few more brilliant saves by the keeper later, I could tell practice was drawing to a close. I discretely slipped out of my hiding spot and made my way back to the castle and waited in the corridor adjacent to the one that I knew the team would enter the castle through. After watching Dan practice for a few solid hours I could not wait to get my hands on him.

Lucidia came in first with the keeper, and then Dan entered with Jack and Finn.

"Hey, Dan!" I called.

Dan spun around, looking startled to see me but a slight smile crept onto his face.

"Slughorn wanted to see us in his office," I told him loud enough for his team to hear.

"I'll catch up with you guys later," he said to the twins who were looking at me with identical expressions of disgust. "Hey," he said to me. "Do we have another potions session?" He asked as he approached me.

"No, I just wanted to talk to you," I said when I was sure his team was out of earshot. He smiled at me and I said, "You know, you're really sexy when you fly."

"You were watching our practice?" he said as his smile widened.

"Maybe," I admitted. "Just don't tell anyone. I don't want people to think I was spying 'cause I'm on the other team and all."

"But you were spying," he teased, lowering his voice as a student walked by so they would not hear our conversation.

"Yeah, spying on you and your sexy face," I winked at him. Glancing around, I saw that the corridor was once again deserted. I took advantage of the brief solitude to slide my hands around his neck and give him a brief kiss. I wanted to kiss him longer, to let my mouth move against his more deeply, to allow my tongue to explore his mouth, but being in a public space, I did not want to risk being seen.

He exhaled as we separated and I felt his sweet breath wash over my face.

"Do you want to maybe hang out later?" he asked in a low voice.

Looking up into his eyes, I saw a glint of mischievousness.

"Of course I do," I responded, unable to think of a better answer while staring into those hypnotic eyes of his.

"Good," he smiled. "I need a bath because I smell like Quidditch but I'll meet you in the room later, yeah?"

"Sounds good to me."

As he gave me a swift kiss, I could not help but think of what I would give to follow him into the bath. But I would have to save that for later.

For now, I watched Dan round the corner and disappear out of sight then made my way back to my dormitory to change into clothes that were slightly more flattering on me. Though if everything went the way I was hoping it would, I would not need those clothes for very long.

"Where have you been?" Alex asked when I entered the Hufflepuff common room.

"Trying to psych out the Slytherins," I said, sitting down next to him on the floor where he was playing a game of Exploding Snap with Tom who was a fourth year and the seeker on our team. Tom's hair was its customary blue and he was as full of energy as ever.

"You guys don't have any homework to do, do you?" I asked as I watched them carry out one of the most competitive games of Exploding Snap I had ever seen.

"Nope!" Tom said as he exploded a pair of cards with his wand.

"Fuck!" cursed Alex as the point for the set went to Tom. "No we don't. Want to play the next round?" he offered after he calmed down.

"No thanks," I replied. "I think I'm going to head down to the library actually. Slughorn wanted me to do some research before my next potions session."

"Aww, come on Phil," whined Tom. "You work hard enough as it is."

"Nah, I really need to do this, sorry. I don't know when our next lesson will be and I want to be prepared."

"Always the goody-two-shoes," said Alex, cautiously flipping over a card.

I hit the back of his head but laughed to myself. If only he knew what I was going to do instead of study in the library….

"I'll see you guys later," I said, heading up to the dormitory to change clothes before I made my way up to the seventh floor. Glancing at my watch, I saw that Dan probably would not be there for a while, but there was no harm in getting there before him.

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When I got to the room, I threw my cloak on the back of one of the large couches and loosened by tie a little. As I had suspected, Dan was not there yet, so I decided to look around a bit more.

The fire was lit again. I walked past the shelves and ran my hands along the books there. It looked like they were mostly academic books. There was an entire section dedicated to just transfiguration. I made a mental note to come back here to look at the books if I had more trouble with the subject. The cabinets were filled with random baubles and bits—mostly little magical trinkets.

I went through, pulling books off of shelves and opening cabinets. I had made it nearly all the way around the room when suddenly I opened a cabinet that was nearly empty. I stared at the singular object that was placed at eye level and almost laughed; whether from shock or irony I was not sure. I picked it up to be sure and my suspicions were confirmed. It was a bottle of lube. It was like this room knew.

As I put it back and closed the cabinet door, I heard the other door open behind me and turned around to see Dan entering the room.

"What?" he said, looking at me.

"What, what?" I asked.

"You look like you were laughing at something."

"Nope," I lied, realizing that I must have still had an amused expression on my face from what I had found in the cabinet. "Come here," I said, letting the desire that had been building in me all day seep into my voice.

He immediately strode over to me. As he got closer I took two steps toward him, wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him the way I had wanted to earlier in the corridor.

"What, you aren't even going to ask me how my day was first?" Dan asked in a joking tone when we broke apart minutes later.

"Right, sorry." I untangled myself from him, took a step backwards, and clasped my hands behind my back. "How was your day, Dan?"

I looked up at him innocently, seeing in his socked expression that he had not meant for me to break contact. His expression softened when he caught a glint of mischievousness in my eyes. "Never mind," he said, closing the gap I had made between us and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"That's what I thought," I said, running my hands through his hair and pulling his face back down to mine. When we broke apart for air, I kissed my way up his neck and nibbled his earlobe. He let out a moan that told me he was as turned on as I was.

Suddenly, Dan took three steps forward, effectively making me fall onto the couch. He stood above me and swiftly took off his shirt and dropped it to the floor. I was again stunned at his perfect, tan body as he straddled my lap and pulled my face up to his. As he began to undo the buttons on my shirt, I let my hands freely explore his smooth skin and solid muscles.

"Why on earth did we wait so long to see each other again?" he asked in between kisses.

"That's a good question," I said, slightly out of breath. "But it has only been three days."

"Seems like three months."  
"Agreed."

Having undone the last button on my shirt, his fingers moved down to the clasp then the zipper on my pants. He tugged at the edge of my pants and I raised my hips so he could slide them off of me. Discarding these on the floor as well, he pushed me sideways so I was lying down on the couch and he was on top of me. As he kissed me, he slid his hand down my chest to my groin and began to palm me, making the tension that had been there since watching him fly begin to intensify. I could not help but let a small groan escape my lips as sensations of pleasure began to run through my body all the way to the tips of my fingers and toes.

"Okay, I know I was majorly turned on since I was watching you fly, but what did I do to make you so eager?" I asked.

"Well, for one thing," he said as he continued to rub his hand along my length, making me squirm underneath him, "you are you. And second, I kind of have a thing for voyeurism."

"But I was watching you, not the other way around."

"Reverse-voyeurism then. I like to be the voyeuree," he laughed.

"So it turned you on that I was watching you?"

"Yeah," he admitted.

"Then I guess I'm going to have to do that more often if this is what I get afterwards."

He just winked at me and planted a few deep kisses on my neck.

I was growing hard from his teasing and he mercifully pulled off my boxers. I watched as he trailed kisses all the way down my chest and up my length. The way he was acting, it was difficult to believe that just a week ago, Dan had been extremely uncomfortable with the idea of being with or even liking another guy. He placed one more kiss on my tip then took me in his mouth. He alternated between combinations of swirling his tongue around me, sucking hard, and pumping his hand up and down. Every touch sent a new wave of pleasure through me and made me all the more eager to do the same to him.

"Hey Dan," I said, hit by a sudden idea that, if possible, turned me on even more.

"Mhmm?" he responded without removing his mouth from my length. The vibrations from this sound sent an intense wave of pleasure through me, causing me to arch my back.

"Turn around," I said when I had regained the ability to speak.

He looked up at me with a quizzical expression on his face.

"I want to have some fun too," I said, motioning for him to do a 180 and looking at him pointedly.

A look of comprehension then a smile and he got off of me and quickly stripped his pants off of himself. He carefully got back on top of me but this time facing the opposite direction so the he was straddling my head. As he wrapped his large hand around me, I tugged at the fabric of his boxers and pulled them off with a little help from him. I smiled, seeing that he was already hard with excitement and arousal.

Grabbing his thighs, I pulled him closer and took him in my mouth. I licked and sucked, matching his rhythm. I felt his thigh muscles tighten under my hands as his pleasure grew more intense. Inspired by the sensation he created earlier, I pulled back until my lips were around his head and I began to hum.

"Shit, Phil!" Dan said and I felt his thighs tighten again.

"Does that feel good?" I asked, plunging my mouth around his entire length then pulling back to the same position.

"Fuck," he said as I started humming again. "Yeah, it does," he moaned.

I continued to do this and I felt him grow closer and closer. He began to take me deeper and deeper into his mouth so my head was hitting the back of his throat. I was consumed by the feeling of being inside of him and having him inside of me. I lost track of where he ended and where I began. Feeling pressure build up inside me, I knew I was close too.

"Phil, I'm close," Dan said as he pumped his hand up and down hard before taking me in his mouth once again.

The sensations of pleasure shooting like electricity through my body prevented me from answering immediately. As I took him deep in my mouth again so his head was touching the back of my throat, the best I could do to acknowledge him was moan.

This sent him over the edge and caused him to groan as he came in my mouth. The vibrations from his mouth caused me to immediately explode inside him.

He collapsed on top of me and slowly and carefully turned himself around so we were facing the same way again.

"You. Are. Amazing. Phil." Dan said, giving me a soft kiss between each word.

"No, you are," I said, capturing his mouth and making the kiss last longer. As it deepened, I could taste myself in his mouth, which was strange, though not altogether unpleasant.

When we broke apart, Dan curled up next to me, placing one of his legs between mine and draping an arm across my chest. I felt him run his hands through my hair gently as I began to run my hand along the skin of his lower back. We lay there for I do not know how long, not speaking but just being together. The comfortable silence somehow almost felt more intimate than the act we had just performed.

Eventually, I decided that if I did not return to the dormitory, Alex would be asking questions so we departed the room, promising to make time for each other in the near future.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I really have no good excuse for why it took me so long to get this chapter up so all I can say is sorry! I actually was waiting until the last chapter got 10 reviews to post this chapter like I have for the rest, but I still should have written this a lot sooner. So, thank you to anyone who is still reading! That being said, I need your guys' help! I feel like I am running out of YouTubers to use as characters so if you have any suggestions for whom to use and what house they should be in, let me know and I will try to work it in to the story. Also if there are any relevant Harry Potter characters from this time period and you would like to remind me of them, please do! I promise I'll post the next chapter after I get 10 reviews on this one!**

Even though it was only two days later, our Friday potions session could not come soon enough. When I walked into the dungeon, the other three were already there.

"Hey, Phil," said Lily brightly when I joined them at the table.

"Hey," I smiled back. "Dan. Snape," I said politely, acknowledging the other two.

I got a half nod of recognition from Snape but Dan responded with, "Hey."

We immediately began discussing what could be improved from the previous time we brewed the potion. Suggestions were tossed around, ideas discussed, and a method established. We then got to work actually making the potion.

The conversation among us was more comfortable than last time. Lily was her bright and cheery self. She talked happily with us, though she was noticeably cold toward Snape, who remained for the most part silently supercilious. When he did speak, it was to tell someone that his or her idea was wrong, earning him a glare from Lily every time. I looked at Dan inquisitively to ask if he knew anything about what was going on between them.

"Later," he mouthed to me.

I _would_ see him later. That was a promise I was going to hold him to.

The electric energy that had been between Dan and I during the previous potions session was just as strong if not stronger than before. But it was different. Less unnerving. Less strange. More familiar. More exciting. If that were even possible. The looks we exchanged were even more full of meaning. Every smile was sweeter. Every touch was more purposeful. It was almost thrilling to try to flirt with my boyfriend as much as possible without being discovered by the other two.

We ended our session fairly early that day, having blown up the potion about half way through. But Snape assured Slughorn that it was much better up until that point and after explaining in detail exactly what we had done and what we believed made it go wrong, we were free to go.

I began to put my things away slowly so that Lily and Snape would leave first. Glancing at Dan, I saw that he was doing the same.

When the dungeon door had swung shut behind the other two, I felt Dan's hand cup my chin and he tilted my face up. "Wanna go for a walk tonight?" he asked me, giving me a brief kiss.

"I would love to," I said, allowing a smile to stretch across my face.

Counting on the fact that most students were enjoying their Friday evenings by avoiding the snow by staying inside by their common room fires, we walked together out of the castle and onto the grounds.

I groaned inwardly at the sight of the ankle deep snow on the ground. I imagined it would be rather difficult to keep a steady conversation with Dan while trying hard not to trip and fall.

"Lets walk in the forest so we don't have to walk through all this snow," Dan suggested, apparently having similar objections. "It should be clear in there."

I agreed and we made our way toward the trees.

We walked in silence for a few steps, marveling at the beauty of the forest at this time of day. The sun was close to setting and the rays were streaming through the leaves, causing golden patches of light to dance across the ground. The sound of the wind that had been stinging our faces moments before was replaced by the song of the sound of thousands of birds mixed with the humming of millions of other tiny creatures.

As I looked around at everything the forest had to offer, I felt a large, soft hand slip into mine. Tearing my eyes away from the beauty of the trees, I looked up at Dan and realized that the most beautiful thing in the forest was standing right beside me. He was perfectly silhouetted against the trees, the light making his hair turn golden and his skin glow.

"Your eyes are stunning in this light," he said, reaching up and brushing my fringe gently out of my face.

I closed my eyes briefly at his touch then moved in and gently brushed my lips against his.

"So, tell me about Lily and Snape," I said, beginning to walk along the winding path through the trees pulling Dan along by the hand.

"Oh, right," said Dan. "How much do you know?"

"Well, it looks like they hate each other. Or at least Lily hates Snape."

"You don't know anything about them being friends though? I don't want to go on about stuff you already know," said Dan.

"They were friends?" I asked, shocked. "I had no idea."

"Yeah, like best friends."

"Wow, that's hard to believe," I said, genuinely surprised. When I thought about it though, I realized that Lily had seemed personally insulted every time Snape spoke and it seemed unlikely that someone could bear such animosity toward someone else without knowing them well. (Though when I remembered Caspar, I realized that this was not altogether impossible.)

"Keep in mind I've never actually talked to Severus about this so everything I know is things I have overheard from his friends or from talking to friends of friends."

I nodded in response.

"So, Lily and Severus were best friends when they came to Hogwarts. I think they lived near each other or something like that so they met before they started school here. When they were sorted though, Severus was put in Slytherin obviously and Lily ended up in Gryffindor."

"That must have made things difficult." Being in two different houses was a big part of the reason Dan and I did not want anyone knowing about our relationship. But as Slytherin and Gryffindor were archrivals, I imagined that it would make things even worse.

"Yeah, it didn't help that Lily is muggleborn either. No offence."

I held up my unoccupied hand as if to wave away the issue. I knew Dan himself had no problem with muggleborns and there was nothing either of us could do to change the fact that most Slytherins looked down on them with disgust.

"All of Severus's friends hated Lily and they got upset with him for hanging around her," Dan continued. "And of course Lily's friends hated Severus because he was a Slytherin. They stuck together for a few years but I guess their friendship fell apart because it was too difficult to have their own friends from their own houses and each other. And I don't think it helped that James Potter was all over Lily either. I'm pretty sure that somewhere down the line Severus fell in love with her—don't tell anyone I said that, I don't know if anyone else suspects it—and James's arrogance was too much for him."

As Dan talked I tried to find a good balance between looking at him so as to absorb all I could of his perfect features and looking at the ground so I would not trip. I tried to listen but found that I was more interested in the way Dan's lips moved than the story of Lily and Snape that was coming out of them. I realized I was listening more to the melodic sound of his voice than the inevitably sad story he was using it to tell. But I _was_ curious so I gave my head a tiny shake and forced myself to take in what he was saying.

"There was a pretty public incident a few years ago," he was saying, "where James and Severus got in a fight and it ended in Severus calling Lily a mudblood. I thought that that combined with the fact that Severus's friends were—are—not the, er, nicest people was pretty much the end of whatever their relationship was. Now Lily and James are dating so everyone pretty much just believes that she and Severus hate each other now."

"But?" I asked, hearing the doubt in his voice.

"But remember those two voices we heard that first night we found that room?" Dan said, turning to me. His eyes were alight with excitement, like he had been waiting to talk to someone about this for a while.

I struggled to pull the memory into my mind. What had happened afterward had effectively dominated what I remembered of that night. "The guy and the girl?" I asked, a vague memory swimming to the surface.

"Yup. I'm pretty sure that was Severus and Lily. Do you remember what they said?"

"Not precisely. I was kind of more worried about not getting caught than listening to them."

"You're just a little goodie-two-shoes, aren't you?" Dan laughed jokingly. He grinned down at me and I blushed a little. "Anyway, Severus said something about how Lily loved him and couldn't deny it anymore after something they had done that night."

"Do you think they hooked up or something?"

"I wouldn't doubt it."

"But what about James?"

"Well it sucks for him, but its not like he's ever going to find out about it. Lily would obviously never tell him unless she was going to leave him—which she won't. And Severus would never risk telling anyone and losing his status with his friends."

"So Lily hates him because she loves him…."

"Tragic, isn't it?" said Dan with a sigh.

"Kinda, yeah." I released his hand and instead wrapped my arm around his waist, wanting him to be closer to me. "I hope they all get a happy ending," I said, feeling genuinely bad for all three of them.

We continued walking, discussing various other failed and successful relationships at Hogwarts.

Eventually, we entered a small clearing. We both stopped in our tracks and fell silent, momentarily stunned by the little Elysian field we had found. There was a pond in the center that was a deep emerald, colored by the faint light of dusk and it sparkled like a gem with the last feeble rays of light softly reflecting off of the surface. The soft moss and large trees that surrounded the pond looked inviting.

After a minute of staring, Dan and I looked at each other. "Want to sit?" I suggested.

Dan just nodded.

I grabbed his hand again and pulled him over to the nearest tree.

Plopping down on the soft ground beneath the branches and leaning back against the wide trunk, I patted the ground next to me and looked up at Dan.

"Scoot forward a bit," he said.

I did as he said and he sat down behind me, one leg on either side of mine. Wrapping his arms around me, he pulled me back against his chest as he reclined against the trunk and rested his chin on my shoulder. I smiled a little to myself; it seemed almost too perfect to be true. Turning my head, I placed a kiss on his cheek then closed my eyes and reclined my head onto his shoulder, reveling in the feeling of being in his arms in such a sacred little grove.

"I used to love going out and exploring nature," Dan said quietly, trying to not disturb the peace.

"Really?"

"Yeah. There are these hills behind my house. When I was little I would spend hours walking through the trees and discovering new little places in them to hide."  
"That's cute," I said. I smiled as I pictured little Dan running around through the trees.

"Sometimes I would even bring a sketchbook and draw things that I found."

"You can draw?"

"No," he said, letting out a low chuckle. "Not well at least. But I know how to hold a pencil and make a few scratches on paper so that's what I did. Sometimes I would even get my parents to cast a spell on the drawings to make them move like the portraits. I would love drawing beetles. They would scamper all over the paper and I would give the drawing to my cat. He would spend hours bouncing around attacking the drawing until it was shredded." I felt his arms tighten around me, pulling me closer. His lips pressed against my neck as he nuzzled his face into the little niche above my shoulder, his warm breath tickling my skin. "I've never told anyone that before," he whispered.

"Well, thank you for sharing," I said, pulling one of his hands to my lips.

When I released it, he began to slowly untuck my shirt. I gasped a little as his cold hands found my stomach.

"Sorry," he said.

"'S fine," I responded, already over the initial shock.

I closed my eyes again as his fingers drifted lightly over my skin. His feather-light touch ran up and down my chest, circled my stomach, caressed my sides. He found a spot that was especially ticklish and despite my efforts not to squirm, Dan noticed my reaction.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who is ticklish," he laughed.

"Mmmm…" was all I managed to respond.

He ran his fingers over the particular spot a few more times, eliciting a few more squirms from me, then continued to let his hands roam under my shirt.

I found that his soft, simple touch was just as, if not more intimate that having sex with him, and definitely at least as pleasurable. Dan managed to find a few more ticklish spots and I noticed that he seemed to like it when I squirmed. The more intense of a reaction I gave him, the more he let his hands glide over that particular spot. Though it tickled, it was surprisingly pleasant. Maybe it was because it was so much more stimulating than normal touching. Maybe it was because letting Dan touch me where I would usually push people's hands away from felt more intimate. Maybe it was because I liked that it was Dan tickling me instead of my brother like when we used to get in tickle fights with the end goal of making the other person wet their pants.

We talked lazily for hours until night fell and I remembered that I needed sleep because I had a Quidditch match the next day. As we walked slowly back to the castle, I could not form a coherent thought. Instead it was a cloud of happiness, peace, and ecstasy that filled my brain. I could not even muster fear of being caught out after hours as we opened the doors to the castle.

"Good luck tomorrow," Dan whispered when we reached the point where we had to part ways to get to our respective dormitories. "I'll be rooting for you. I know you will be fantastic." He wrapped his arms around me. "Good night, Phil," he whispered.

He gave me one last long, deep kiss then turned to go.

"Good night, Dan," I whispered after his retreating figure.

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The smile I awoke with the following morning quickly slid off my face like stinksap when I remembered that I had a Quidditch match. The sickening feeling of nervousness exploded in my stomach like a bomb. My throat began to constrict and I felt cold dread spread through my veins to the very tips of my fingers.

Though I was deathly nervous, it was a familiar feeling. I felt like this before every match and I found solace in the fact that the feeling would go away as soon as I got on my broom and my feet left the ground. Slowly, I dragged my feet out of bed and began to get dressed, wishing time would pass more slowly.

With my robes on, I dragged myself down to the Great Hall for breakfast. As I walked down the canary-yellow clad Hufflepuff table toward my team, I heard Caspar yell something at me followed by the sound of jeering and laughter. It was not the yelling itself that bothered me; it was all part of the sport. Instead it was the fact that it caused another wave of nerves to crash through my stomach as I was reminded yet again of the match.

The rest of the team was already there and I took a seat between Tom and Carrie.

"Phil, how are you feeling?" Carrie asked.

"Fine," I managed to respond.

"Come on. You need to eat something," she encouraged, noticing that I had not touched the piece of toast I had put on my plate.

The idea of eating right then made me want to throw up but I picked up the toast and took a bite. My mouth was dry so it tasted like cardboard so I chased it with a bit of orange juice.

"There you go," Carrie smiled. "You're an amazing keeper, Phil. You're going to do great."

"Yeah, Phil," Tom chimed in. "You're probably the best one in the school." He ran his hand through his long, poofy blue hair, which just flopped back down in front of his eyes. "I don't know why you get so nervous before these things. Quidditch is such an amazing sport and I just get so excited to get the opportunity to go out and play it! Just think of all the things that have to exist for us to play. Enchanted broom sticks, for one. How weird of an idea is that? But thanks to whoever invented them, we can fly without having to even cast our own spells! I'm just so excited to be here right now! Like, look up! Look up at the ceiling and tell me it doesn't look like a fantastic day outside!"

I did as he said and saw that the sun was indeed shining and there was barely a cloud in the sky. I could not help but smile a little; Tom's enthusiasm was infectious. He would often get excited like this about random little things. People often thought he was taking "special" potions but he always insisted that life was the only special potion he needed.

Despite Tom's excitement, I still could not shake the nerves. It did not help that whenever I looked up, I saw Dan's face across the Great Hall, reminding me that he would be watching me. I knew he could not act differently toward Caspar just because he was mean to me, but I still felt slightly betrayed when I saw them sitting next to each other.

I decided that it would be a better idea to refrain from looking at Dan for the remainder of the morning so I instead let my eyes drift over to the end of the Ravencalw table where the Quidditch team was sitting. I watched as PJ sat in silence eating his breakfast, eyes never leaving his place. He never spoke before a Quidditch match, but I never got the impression that this was from nerves. Instead, I thought it was his way of psyching himself up for the match. I wished I could be as calm as he was as another pang of nervousness hit my stomach, making me want to spit out the bite of toast I was chewing.

Looking to PJ's left, I saw Bryarly in a deep conversation with the captain, Michael Aranda. Like the other three teams, their main concern was the seeker. Since we were not professional players, the team that caught the snitch was usually the team that won.

I saw Zoe walk by and heard her say, "Good luck today, PJ."

He looked up at her, smiled, nodded his thanks, and she made her way out of the Great Hall to the Quidditch pitch.

Looking around, I noticed that many people were doing the same and had left already. I suffered another intense pang of nerves to the point where I became light headed when I realized the match was going to begin soon.

"Come on, Phil," said Tom, tugging at my sleeve. "We need to go to the locker room."

My knees were shaking as I stood up but I managed to follow Tom and the rest of the team out of the great hall. As we were leaving, I allowed myself one last glance at the Slytherin table. My blues eyes immediately found Dan's brown ones.

He mouthed, "Good luck," and winked discreetly.

A small voice in the back of my head cracked through my nerves and said, "That's your boyfriend."

I could not help but smile a little as I felt slightly less nervous.

"Tom, your hair," said Marcus, one of the beaters on our team.

"Oh shit," said Tom. "Phil, why didn't you say anything?" he reprimanded jokingly, hitting me on the arm. "If I had left it blue, everyone would think I was turning against my own team!"

He screwed his eyes shut and, being a metamorphmagus, was able to turn it black and yellow within seconds.

"That's better," he said, looking in the mirror as we entered the locker room. Despite being a Hufflepuff, Tom wore his hair blue 95 percent of the time. He only ever bothered to change it for special events and Quidditch matches.

By eleven o'clock I could have sworn that the entire school was out in the stands, many with binoculars. I knew Carrie would be standing among the rest of the Hufflepuffs holding her traditional hand-made sign. She would make one before every Hufflepuff match. They would have anything from a dancing beaver to portraits of each member of the team. Alex had recently figured out a tricky little charm to make it play music he had written when it was waved. I knew I probably would not see it during the game, but I hoped that it would be hanging in the common room when we returned like it always was when we won.

"Okay, best friends!" said our captain Jim Chapman enthusiastically when we had taken seats on the benches in the locker room.

Alfie and Marcus glanced at each other and rolled their eyes in unison. Jim really was one of the nicest people on the planet but sometimes it seemed excessive, especially when we were about to go out and play a game as potentially violent as Quidditch. However, we were all thankful to have him when was pouring rain and he decided that team bonding over warm butterbeers was a better option than continuing practice.

"You guys have been training so hard and I am so proud of how far you have come! As long as we all put in our best efforts, I am confident we will all be successful. But remember, it doesn't matter whether we win or lose."

I saw Marcus mumble the last line of Jim's speech along with him. That was how he always ended his pre-game speech.

"Now lets get out there and play some Quidditch!" Jim said enthusiastically, leading the way out of the locker room. I followed behind Tom, hoping my knees would not give out beneath me.

As we stepped out onto the field, the roar of the crowd drowned out the sound of my teeth chattering. The referee was waiting for us in the middle of the pitch, broom in one hand, whistle in the other.

"Captains, shake hands please," he said when the teams had taken their places on their respective sides.

Jim stepped forward with a huge smile on his face to shake hands with Michael, who looked calm, collected, and determined.

"Good. Now, I want a nice fair game from all of you. Merlin knows it makes my job a lot easier."

I looked up into the stands and took a deep, steadying breath, waiting for the command that would allow me to escape from this overwhelming feeling of nervousness.

"Right, mount your brooms," the referee called.

He blew a long whistle and we were off. As I flew as fast as I could toward the goal posts, I felt as though I were leaving my nerves on the ground. I imagined that the wind was washing them off of me and I let myself be absorbed in the game itself.

By the time I got up to my position, the game was already being played at full force. Tom and Bryarly were hovering high above opposite ends of the field, waiting for a glimpse of the golden snitch. I saw Marcus hit a bludger with furious effort at PJ who avoided it with grace. Alfie had the Quaffle and was speeding toward the goal posts, the other two chasers in formation.

At the last second, Alfie passed the Quaffle to Jim who made a magnificent shot, sending the Quaffle over the Ravenclaw keeper's head and through the hoop.

"HUFFLEPUFFS SCORE!" I heard the announcer yell over the cacophony of cheers and boos from the stands. "That has to be the fastest first goal in Hogwarts history! It looks like Hufflepuff captain Jim made an excellent choice with his new chaser Alfie Deyes."

I had to agree. Alfie was very good, especially for a third year and he had quickly learned how to work well with the other chasers.

Hovering in front of the goal post, I watched the match continue to unfold. Michael made a neat pass to PJ who dodged a Hufflepuff chaser and immediately passed it back. But Jim was able to intercept the pass and he effectively reversed the direction of play. He zoomed down the pitch, Ravenclaw chasers slamming into him from either side. A roar erupted from the stands as his shot was blocked by the keeper and the Quaffle returned to the fourth year Ravenclaw chaser, Ryan Higa.

Ryan had barely flown 20 meters when he was hit in the back of the head by a bludger sent from Marcus, which caused him to drop the Quaffle into the awaiting hands of Alfie who quickly passed it to Jim. A bludger came screaming toward Jim, forcing him to do a roll in midair and consequently dropping the Quaffle as well. I had to admit, it was a nice play by the Ravenclaw beater but now Michael had the Quaffle and was streaking towards me with the other two chasers.

By now, it was instinct which direction to move in reference to the position of the Quaffle. I was hoping one of their chasers would be taken out by a bludger or one of our chasers but I was ready to defend the goals should one of them take a shot. As they drew closer, PJ passed the Quaffle back to Michael who immediately sent the ball hurdling in my direction.

I reacted intuitively, lunging out toward the red ball. Managing to catch it in the tips of my fingers, I threw it out to Jim. Only after the Quaffle left my hands did I hear the cheering coming from the Hufflepuffs and, to my surprise, the Slytherins. Realizing that the entire Slytherin house would be cheering for Hufflepuff because Ravenclaw was currently beating them in the standings, I felt new a surge of confidence. I pictured Dan down in the stands, screaming for me with the rest of them. It would be one time when he would not have to hide from his friends.

Before the cheers had died down, Hufflepuff had scored again. And in mere minutes, the Ravenclaw chasers were streaming down toward my end again, but I managed to make the save.

The game continued much in this manner: fast paced and with a lot of "ohh"s, "ahh"s, cheers, and boos from the crowd. Our chasers were doing extraordinarily well, scoring almost every chance they had. And I had saved every goal except for three—two spectacular shots from PJ and one from Michael. An hour later the score stood at 180 to 30 Hufflepuff. Ravenclaw needed to catch the snitch now to even tie the game.

Just then, Ravenclaw called for a time out. All 15 brooms soared back down to the ground.

"You guys are doing incredibly!" said Jim, almost laughing from happiness. "Alfie, I don't think I have ever seen you play any better! And Phil, you made some spectacular saves up there! And the rest of you, my goodness! I know I said to do your best, but I had no idea your best was this good!"

As Jim beamed around at us, the excitement was tangible. Marcus and Alfie did not even roll their eyes at Jim's enthusiasm; instead, they smiled right back.

"Right now, I'm sure Michael is telling Bryarly to catch the snitch as soon as she sees it even if they will lose, because they can't afford for the score to get any worse. Now, that means we have a limited amount of time to score one more goal to ensure that we win. And Phil, you just have to keep doing what you are doing and not let anyone score. Got it? You guys have been doing so well, I'm sure we will win!"

Just then, the referee blew his whistle to signal a warning that the time out was over. We all mounted our brooms and took our positions. And just like that, we were off again.

I watched Bryarly as she circled overhead, clearly in a desperate search for the snitch. At the other end of the pitch, Michael had regained control of the Quaffle and was making his way toward me.

Several things happened at once. Alfie slammed into Michael and punched the Quaffle from his hand, sending it soaring into Jim's arms. Also, Bryarly made a sudden hawk-like dive, turning her into a streak of blue, Tom, a streak of yellow, following right behind her.

It was a race to see who would complete their task first. If our chasers could score before Bryarly could catch the snitch, we would win. If Bryarly caught it first, the match would end in a tie.

I held my breath as our chasers weaved their way through the Ravenclaw defense, dodging bludger after bludger and avoiding being derailed by the chasers. Bryarly and Tom pushed themselves into an even steeper dive then both made a sharp turn around one of the goalposts.

Everyone in the stands was holding their breath. Even the announcer fell silent, probably unsure which part of the match to narrate.

The next few seconds unfolded in slow motion. Jim, dodging a bludger, passed the Quaffle to Alfie who faked out the Ravenclaw seeker and scored. Moments later, Bryarly shot back up into the air, snitch in her hand but a look of crushing disappointment on her face.

The crowd erupted. I soared down to the ground with the rest of my team quickly, all of us colliding in a massive group hug. I felt my back being clapped in congratulations as the rest of our house streamed onto the field and surrounded us. A few seventh years had picked up Alfie, who had the biggest, most excited smile on his face, and were carrying him around on their shoulders.

Suddenly I felt a pair of hands come from behind and rest on my hips and an unmistakable voice say, "Great job, Phil," in my ear. But before I could even turn around to say thanks, Dan had disappeared into the crowd.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o -o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

When the rest of the team and I entered the common room, we were greeted with thunderous cheers and applause. Countless hands reached for us and pulled us into the middle of the festivities.

The common room was already fully decorated in appropriately colored streamers, ribbons, and banners. The tables were laden with food that I assumed had been taken from the kitchen, which was literally down the corridor from our dormitory. And sure enough, Carrie's banner was hanging over the fireplace. It depicted a badger in Quidditch robes, soaring around on a broomstick.

After a few drinks, Alex and Tom had begun to serenade the common room with covers of popular songs and some of songs their own creation and the celebration continued until well past midnight.

It was only after Alex mentioned Chris's name when we were finally getting ready for bed that I remembered the prediction he had made during the last Hogsmead weekend about the match. I went to sleep making a mental note never to bet against Chris on Quidditch outcomes.


End file.
